Loona
| Loona | |
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Loona in 2008
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Marie-José van der Kolk |
| Also known as | Carisma |
| Born | September 16, 1974 |
| Origin | IJmuiden, Netherlands |
| Genres | Dance, Pop |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, songwriter, dancer |
| Years active | 1994–present |
| Website | www.loona.com |
Marie-José van der Kolk (born September 16, 1974), better known by her stage name Loona, is a Dutch singer, songwriter and dancer.
Van der Kolk was born on September 16, 1974 in IJmuiden, Netherlands. In 1991, she met DJ and producer DJ Sammy at Zorba's Club in El Arenal Mallorca. In 1992, DJ Sammy became resident DJ at the Joy Palace Club in El Arenal, while van der Kolk was a resident dancer there, for whom she started to be a background singer for live performances. She soon adopted the stage name "Carisma" and performed as a freatured artist on DJ Sammy's music. In 1996, they released their first singles "Life is Just a Game" and "You Are My Angel", which was their first hit. In 1997, with the release of their third single "Prince of Love", they scored a Top 30 hit in Germany, followed by the singles "Golden Child" and "Magic Moment". DJ Sammy's debut studio album Life Is Just A Game, which heavily involved van der Kolk on vocals, peaked at 62 in the German album chart. In the Summer of 1998. van der Kolk came up with a new project called Loona (leaned on the Spanish word "luna" for "moon"), also produced by DJ Sammy. Originally started as a Duo, DJ Sammy stayed in the background for music videos and cover arts. The first single, which also appeared as a bonus track on Life is Just a Game, was a cover of Paradisio's song "Bailando" and it became the summer song of 1998 in Germany, reaching the number 1 of the German charts and Echo-awarded as "Best International Dance Single". By Autumn, it was followed by another single "Hijo de la Luna" (a cover of the Spanish band Mecano) which also reached number 1 on the German charts. These two singles sold millions and became gold- and platinum selling records in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
In 1999, Loona's first studio album titled Lunita has been released, followed by the third and final single, the Top 30 hit "Dónde Vas". The song "Mamboleo", a cover version of Herbert Grönemeyer's song "Mambo", from the second album Entre dos Aguas has been released, which was also Echo-awarded as "Best Dance Single". Due to a lawsuit set up by Herbert Grönemeyer, a second black and white music video was shot, and finally both videos banned from music stations to be played for just one day of airing, after the infringement case. The song itself then had to be removed from Entre dos Aguas, the re-issued versions of the album does not include the track and only can be found on rare and early pressings (Still the song re-appeared and included on Loona's first compilation album Greatest Hits later in 2000). Entre dos Aguas saw the three more single releases "Salvador Dalí", another cover of the Spanish band Mecano, "La Vida es una Flor" and the Christmas single "Navidad", becoming minor hits and didn't reached the Top 50 in Germany. In 2000, Loona's first compilation album Greatest Hits and its first single, "Latino Lover" (a Spanish remake of "You're the Greatest Lover" by the pop band Luv'), was released and peaked at #6 in German and Swiss single chart. In 1999, van der Kolk again provided guest vocals as Carisma for DJ Sammy's single "In 2 Eternity" from his first remix album DJ Sammy at Work (In the Mix).
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