Helena Hubertina Johanna "Lenny" Kuhr (born 22 February 1950) is a Dutch singer-songwriter.

Lenny Kuhr
Kuhr at Het Grote Songfestivalfeest in 2019
Background information
Birth nameHelena Hubertina Johanna Kuhr
Born (1950-02-22) 22 February 1950 (age 74)
Eindhoven, Netherlands
OccupationSinger-songwriter

Career

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Lenny Kuhr at the Nationaal Songfestival in 1969
 
Lenny Kuhr's 1969 Eurovision Song Contest dress

In 1967, she started a singing career in the Netherlands, performing songs in the French chanson tradition. In 1969, she represented the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest with her composition "De troubadour" (lyrics by David Hartsema; orchestra conducted by Franz de Kok). She was one of the four winners that year.

In the early seventies, Kuhr was more successful in France than in her home country. In 1970 she toured with Georges Brassens. Late 1971 she had a top 10 hit in France with "Jesus Christo".

In 1980, she had her biggest hit in the Netherlands: "Visite", a song she performed with the French group Les Poppys. She has been releasing records ever since, though without major chart success.

Lenny Kuhr was one of the artists who recorded the song "Shalom from Holland" (written by Simon Hammelburg and Ron Klipstein) as a token of solidarity with the Israeli people, threatened by missiles from Iraq, during the Gulf War in 1991.

Lenny Kuhr performed "De troubadour" during the interval of the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest on Saturday 22 May 2021 in Rotterdam, in a segment called "Rock the Roof", together with other Eurovision winners.[1] Kuhr later recorded the song in five additional languages: English, French, German, Spanish, and Italian.

In March 2024, Lenny Kuhr was harassed on stage by pro-Palestine activists during a concert in Waalwijk.[2][3]

Personal life

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Kuhr's first marriage was in 1974 to an Israeli doctor, whom she met after she had her nose damaged in an attack in May 1973, in Haarlem. Her new husband repaired her nose and Kuhr converted to Judaism. She had two daughters with her first husband, in 1975 and in 1980, before moving back to the Netherlands in 1981.[4][5]

After her divorce, Kuhr was romantically involved with songwriter Herman Pieter de Boer, from 1981 to 1993.

She was married for a second time in 2003.

Discography

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  • 1969: Lenny Kuhr
  • 1971: De zomer achterna
  • 1972: Tout ce que j'aime / Les enfants
  • 1972: De wereld waar ik van droom
  • 1974: God laat ons vrij
  • 1976: 'n Dag als vandaag
  • 1980: Dromentrein
  • 1981: Avonturen
  • 1982: Oog in oog
  • 1983: De beste van Lenny Kuhr (compilation album)
  • 1986: Quo vadis
  • 1988: Lenny Kuhr (compilation album)
  • 1990: Het beste van Lenny Kuhr (compilation album)
  • 1990: De blauwe nacht
  • 1992: Heilig vuur
  • 1994: Altijd heimwee
  • 1997: Gebroken stenen (also released in German as Gebrochene Steine)
  • 1997: Stemmen in de nacht
  • 1999: Oeverloze liefde
  • 2000: Visite (compilation album)
  • 2001: Hollands glorie (compilation album)
  • 2001: Fadista
  • 2004: Op de grens van jou en mij
  • 2005: Panta Rhei
  • 2007: 40 Jaar verliefd (live album)
  • 2010: Hollands glorie (compilation album)
  • 2010: Mijn liedjes mijn leven (CD/DVD boxset)
  • 2011: Liefdeslied
  • 2013: Wie ben je
  • 2017: Gekust door de eeuwigheid
  • 2019: Het lied gaat door
  • 2021: Favorieten Expres (compilation album)
  • 2022: Lenny Kuhr

References

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  1. ^ "Eurovision". BBC. 18 May 2021. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
  2. ^ "Concert van Lenny Kuhr in Waalwijk verstoord door pro-Palestijnse activisten". NOS Nieuws (in Dutch). 24 March 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  3. ^ "Activists heckle singer Lenny Kuhr, 74, over Israel links". DutchNews. 25 March 2024. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  4. ^ [1] Archived 10 February 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Biografie". Lenny Kuhr. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
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Awards and achievements
Preceded by Winner of the Eurovision Song Contest
1969
(tied with   Lulu,   Salomé &   Frida Boccara)
Succeeded by
Preceded by Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
1969
Succeeded by