Recent from talks
Di-rect
Knowledge base stats:
Talk channels stats:
Members stats:
Di-rect
Di-rect (stylised in uppercase) is a Dutch rock band from The Hague, formed in 1999. The band's current line-up consists of Jamie Westland (drums), Frans "Spike" van Zoest (guitar), Bas van Wageningen (bass), Paul Jan Bakker (guitar) and Marcel Veenendaal (lead vocals).
From 1999 to 2009, Tim Akkerman was the band's lead vocalist. The band was commercially successful, scoring seven top ten singles on the Dutch Top 40 with Akkerman, but he left the band after four albums. The band held a televised reality show contest in search of the band's new singer, which Veenendaal won.
The band did not have the same success with Veenendaal originally until 2020, when the single "Soldier On" achieved widespread popularity in the Netherlands associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. It became the band's first top ten single in 13 years.
Di-rect began in October 1999 when 15-year-old Jamie Westland asked his father Dick to help him set up a band. Three other teenagers joined him, the oldest being 19-year-old frontman Tim Akkerman. Within a few months, Di-rect completed a five-track demo which included the song "Just the Way I Do". 3FM radio DJ Rob Stenders saw them play live and was impressed by them. He played a song from their demo on national radio, and this generated considerable interest by record companies. Two months later Di-rect signed with Dino Music/EMI.
Bassist Bas van Wageningen came up with the band name. It was originally spelled Direct, but the band added a hyphen because the internet domain "www.direct.com" was not available.
In 2001, the band released "Just the Way I Do", followed by their debut album Discover. "Just the Way I Do" became the band's first charting single in May 2001, eventually peaking at No. 24 on the Dutch Top 40. The album's third single, "Inside My Head", became the band's first top ten hit in the Netherlands, peaking at No. 8 in March 2002. The music video for the song featured Dutch gymnast Renske Endel, who had just won the silver medal at the 2001 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. That summer, they were also invited to appear at the Pinkpop and Parkpop festivals. The album was certified Gold in the Netherlands by January 2003. At the 2003 Edison Awards, "Inside My Head" won Single of the Year.
The band's second album Over the Moon was released in 2003. Its first two singles, "Adrenaline" and "She" were both top ten hits, and "She" was the band's biggest hit yet, reaching No. 2 on the Dutch Top 40. That year, Di-rect performed at the Museumplein in Amsterdam for Koninginnedag and signed a sponsorship contract with Pepsi in June. De Volkskrant noted in 2003 that Di-rect was "popular (especially among girls)" and wrote "punky pop songs". The following singles from the album "Rollercoaster" and "Don't Kill Me Tonight" both reached the charts, but were less successful. Akkerman sang on "Als je iets kan doen", a charity single released under Artiesten voor Azië in relief for the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.
Di-rect's third album, All Systems Go!, debuted at number one on the Dutch Albums Chart in February 2005, the band's first to do so. The lead single, "Hungry for Love", was a cover of a song by Alistair Griffin and reached No. 3 in the Netherlands. Two further singles, "Cool Without You" and "Webcam Girl", also reached the top 10, and "Blind for You", featuring the classical pianist Wibi Soerjadi, made No. 13. In September 2005, Di-rect competed against the Belgian band Nailpin in the Dutch MTV show Road Rally, where they had to travel from California to New York City with one full tank of gas in a van and no other expenses paid for, needing to schedule their own concerts along the way in order to make money to complete the journey.
Hub AI
Di-rect AI simulator
(@Di-rect_simulator)
Di-rect
Di-rect (stylised in uppercase) is a Dutch rock band from The Hague, formed in 1999. The band's current line-up consists of Jamie Westland (drums), Frans "Spike" van Zoest (guitar), Bas van Wageningen (bass), Paul Jan Bakker (guitar) and Marcel Veenendaal (lead vocals).
From 1999 to 2009, Tim Akkerman was the band's lead vocalist. The band was commercially successful, scoring seven top ten singles on the Dutch Top 40 with Akkerman, but he left the band after four albums. The band held a televised reality show contest in search of the band's new singer, which Veenendaal won.
The band did not have the same success with Veenendaal originally until 2020, when the single "Soldier On" achieved widespread popularity in the Netherlands associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. It became the band's first top ten single in 13 years.
Di-rect began in October 1999 when 15-year-old Jamie Westland asked his father Dick to help him set up a band. Three other teenagers joined him, the oldest being 19-year-old frontman Tim Akkerman. Within a few months, Di-rect completed a five-track demo which included the song "Just the Way I Do". 3FM radio DJ Rob Stenders saw them play live and was impressed by them. He played a song from their demo on national radio, and this generated considerable interest by record companies. Two months later Di-rect signed with Dino Music/EMI.
Bassist Bas van Wageningen came up with the band name. It was originally spelled Direct, but the band added a hyphen because the internet domain "www.direct.com" was not available.
In 2001, the band released "Just the Way I Do", followed by their debut album Discover. "Just the Way I Do" became the band's first charting single in May 2001, eventually peaking at No. 24 on the Dutch Top 40. The album's third single, "Inside My Head", became the band's first top ten hit in the Netherlands, peaking at No. 8 in March 2002. The music video for the song featured Dutch gymnast Renske Endel, who had just won the silver medal at the 2001 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. That summer, they were also invited to appear at the Pinkpop and Parkpop festivals. The album was certified Gold in the Netherlands by January 2003. At the 2003 Edison Awards, "Inside My Head" won Single of the Year.
The band's second album Over the Moon was released in 2003. Its first two singles, "Adrenaline" and "She" were both top ten hits, and "She" was the band's biggest hit yet, reaching No. 2 on the Dutch Top 40. That year, Di-rect performed at the Museumplein in Amsterdam for Koninginnedag and signed a sponsorship contract with Pepsi in June. De Volkskrant noted in 2003 that Di-rect was "popular (especially among girls)" and wrote "punky pop songs". The following singles from the album "Rollercoaster" and "Don't Kill Me Tonight" both reached the charts, but were less successful. Akkerman sang on "Als je iets kan doen", a charity single released under Artiesten voor Azië in relief for the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami.
Di-rect's third album, All Systems Go!, debuted at number one on the Dutch Albums Chart in February 2005, the band's first to do so. The lead single, "Hungry for Love", was a cover of a song by Alistair Griffin and reached No. 3 in the Netherlands. Two further singles, "Cool Without You" and "Webcam Girl", also reached the top 10, and "Blind for You", featuring the classical pianist Wibi Soerjadi, made No. 13. In September 2005, Di-rect competed against the Belgian band Nailpin in the Dutch MTV show Road Rally, where they had to travel from California to New York City with one full tank of gas in a van and no other expenses paid for, needing to schedule their own concerts along the way in order to make money to complete the journey.
Recent media