De Leeuw gained national fame in the late eighties and early nineties with television shows for the public broadcasting company VARA. Though satire was only a part of these shows and much of its humour was essentially harmless he came into publicity with satire about Dutch show business personalities who were often ridiculed.
Besides, many obscure musical acts were featured in his shows, many of which managed to gain national fame after they had been in De Leeuw's programme (e.g. Twarres and AIDS suffering singer Rene Klijn). VARA has since continued his shows apart from a few interruptions, often with considerable success.
In the early nineties, Paul de Leeuw also had some shows celebrating the new year. In the 1993-1994 show he ridiculed the new commercial television channel RTL 5 by announcing another new channel, "RTL 6" (RTL six, beter dan niks (at least better than nothing)). This led to a trial by the RTL company, who demanded that De Leeuw withdraw his joke.
He and his partner, Stephan Nuger, have adopted two children: son Kas (adopted in October 2001) and son Tobey (adopted in December 2002).
Paul de Leeuw has had many hit singles in The Netherlands. He is most famous for: Vlieg met me mee (#2), Ik wil niet dat je liegt / Waarheen, waarvoor (#1), and 'k Heb je lief (#3). Since the beginning of his television and singing career he released albums and singles, always becoming a big success.
In 2006, he recorded the song "Mijn Houten Hart" (My Wooden Heart) with Raffaela, which was later released as a single and peaked at #18 in the Dutch Singles Top 100, becoming one of his smallest hits.
Eurovision Song Contest 2006 incident
De Leeuw is, despite being famous for a long time in the Netherlands, best-known internationally for presenting the results of the Dutch televote in the Eurovision Song Contest 2006. De Leeuw was supposed to present the televote by simply thanking the presenters, performers and fans, before giving the result but instead the openly gay De Leeuw gave his mobile number to the male presenter Sakis Rouvas live on-air, and made other comments which somewhat lengthened the Dutch results.
De Leeuw also made a reference to gay culture when he remarked that Rouvas and his female co-presenter Maria Menounos reminded him of Will & Grace. As the results were live and required for the contest to continue, De Leeuw could not be cut off until he finished giving the voting results.
De Leeuw's actions resulted in negative comments from the commentators, with the BBC's Terry Wogan calling the act "pathetic" and asking "Who selected this eejit?" during the United Kingdom coverage of the contest. Other commentators, like the Portuguese Eladio Climaco, didn't translate properly the gay remarks and said he was saying that they really look like Greeks. Parts of the dialogue were also shown on the German comedy show TV total.
The dialogue between De Leeuw and Rouvas
Rouvas: Hello Netherlands! Paul...
De Leeuw: Hello Greece, kalisperma everybody! [note that sperma means sperm in many languages, at least both in Dutch and Greek]
Rouvas: Kalispera Paul. [kalispera means 'Good evening', which was supposed to be said]
De Leeuw: You look like Will... [stops, likely due to the cheering of the crowd behind him] You look like Will & Grace, you two. So here are the votes, the Dutch votes. Let's come. [In an extremely high tempo] One, Ukreene (sic), two, Russia, Germany, three, Ireland, four, Greece, five, Lithuania, six, Finland, seven points! [resumes normal tempo]] Now the eight points. Are you ready Chaci, tzatziki, cichaci?
Rouvas: Yes, haha.
De Leeuw: Are you ready? Eight points... I like your blouse... The eight points are for Bosnia-Hoshegovina (sic). Yeah.
Rouvas: Bosnie-Herzegovine, huit points.
De Leeuw: Yes, I say. And the ten points, Zhacki, Zhicka, Chucka, are from (sic) Armenia!
Rouvas: Armenie, dix points.
De Leeuw: Ok, and Chacki, do you have my mobile number now or after twelve points?
Rouvas: Give it to me now. I bet it's 69 69 69. [In Greece, mobile numbers always begin with 69, but the rest of the 69's are a sexual innuendo, since Rouvas did not seem to like Paul's lines.]
De Leeuw: Ok, 00... [interrupted by Rouvas' remark] no no no no no... I'm not the French guy! [Probably refers that Rouvas was once interviewed for a French magazine, in which the interviewer assumed that Rouvas was gay and directed his questions accordingly.] Its 00 31 6 24 74 44 32 10 dial 1. Twelve points goes to, I'm very proud to say, Turkey! Twelve points.
Rouvas: Turquie, douze points.
Niet Een Zoals Jij
Paul de Leeuw Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
dan ben jij zo dicht bij mij
en als je me aankijkt dan lees ik in je ogen
dat je echt van me houdt zoals ik ben
helemaal en ik weet dat ik zonder jouw verdwaal
waar ik ook ga, waar ik ook sta
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
je houdt me vast als het donker wordt
'k geef je m'n vertrouwen want jij bent die ene
op wie ik altijd kan bouwen
sinds jij er bent, voel ik me voor het eerst
niet alleen, met jouw warmte en liefde om me heen
waar ik ook ga, waar ik ook sta
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
wat ik ook doe, of wie ik ontmoet
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
'k weet niet eens meer
hoe het was zonder jou, zonder jou
maar nu ik voel, dat ik steeds meer van je hou
kan ik leven, en liefde geven, dat komt alleen door jou
waar ik ook ga, waar ik ook sta
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
wat ik ook doe, of wie ik ontmoet
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
waar ik ook ga, waar ik ook sta
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
wat ik ook doe, of wie ik ontmoet
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
The lyrics of Paul de Leeuw's song "Niet Een Zoals Jij" express the deep connection and love that the singer has for his partner. Waking up with his lover beside him fills him with a feeling of completeness and he can see the love in their eyes. He acknowledges that he would be lost without his partner and that no one else could ever fill the void that they would leave if they weren't there. The singer also describes his partner as a source of strength and stability in his life, someone he can always count on. The chorus repeats the sentiment that there is no one else in the world who could fit the singer as perfectly as his lover does. The final verse celebrates the impact that this love has on the singer's life, transforming it completely and allowing him to give love in return.
Overall, the lyrics of "Niet Een Zoals Jij" offer a beautiful and heartfelt portrait of love and commitment. The singer emphasizes the unique connection that he shares with his partner and the transformative power of this relationship. It is a song that acknowledges the deep emotional bond that can form between two people and the way that this bond changes everything about a person's experience of life.
Line by Line Meaning
als ik met jouw 's morgens wakker word
When I wake up with you in the morning
dan ben jij zo dicht bij mij
You are so close to me at that moment
en als je me aankijkt dan lees ik in je ogen
And when you look at me, I can see in your eyes
dat je echt van me houdt zoals ik ben
That you truly love me for who I am
helemaal en ik weet dat ik zonder jouw verdwaal
Completely, and I know that without you, I am lost
waar ik ook ga, waar ik ook sta
No matter where I go, no matter where I stand
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
No one fits me like you do
wat ik ook doe, of wie ik ontmoet
No matter what I do or who I meet
niet een past zo bij mij als jij
No one fits me like you do
je houdt me vast als het donker wordt
You hold me tight when it gets dark
'k geef je m'n vertrouwen want jij bent die ene
I trust you because you are the one
op wie ik altijd kan bouwen
I can always rely on you
sinds jij er bent, voel ik me voor het eerst
Since you've been here, I feel for the first time
niet alleen, met jouw warmte en liefde om me heen
Not alone, with your warmth and love around me
'k weet niet eens meer
I don't even remember
hoe het was zonder jou, zonder jou
What it was like without you, without you
maar nu ik voel, dat ik steeds meer van je hou
But now I feel that I love you more and more
kan ik leven, en liefde geven, dat komt alleen door jou
I can live and give love, that's all because of you
Contributed by Penelope F. Suggest a correction in the comments below.