Bobbejaan Schoepen

Bobbejaan Schoepen
ca. 1943
ca. 1943
Background information
Birth nameModest Schoepen
Born(1925-05-16)16 May 1925
OriginBoom, Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium
Died17 May 2010(2010-05-17) (aged 85)
GenresTwang
Folk
Pop
Country
Cabaret
Film music
Instrument(s)Vocals
Guitar
Art whistling
Ukulele
Harmonica
Yodeling
Years active1935–2010
LabelsDecca Records, World Music Company, Sony BMG, EMI, PIAS, Bobbejaan Records
WebsiteBobbejaan Schoepen website

Bobbejaan Schoepen (a pseudonym of Modest Schoepen; 16 May 1925 – 17 May 2010) was a Flemish pioneer in Belgian pop music, vaudeville, and European country music.[1] Schoepen was a versatile entertainer, entrepreneur, singer-songwriter, guitarist, comedian, actor, and professional whistler, as well as the founder and former director of the amusement park Bobbejaanland.[2] His musical career flourished from 1948 until the first half of the 1970s. He sold more than five million copies from his repertoire of 482 songs, which extended from Twang, cabaret, instrumental film music, chansons, country, to folk and vocal music.[3][4] Born in Boom, Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium, he worked his way up from a working-class environment to become one of the 200 richest people in Belgium.[5]

Schoepen married Dutch former opera singer and photographer's model Josephina (Josée) Jongen on 18 May 1961. They have five children: Robert ("Bob Jr.", 1962), Myriam (1963), Jacky (1964), Peggy (1968), and Tom (1970). His son Tom became his manager in Belgium.

  1. ^ "Bobbejaan Schoepen, a Flemish entertainer" – Histories documentary, 4 January 2001 (VRT-Canvas).
  2. ^ "De culturele weerwraak van de jodelaar". De Standaard. 5 October 2008. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 2 July 2013.
  3. ^ "Schoepen Troef", Knack Focus Magazine, 14 February 2007.
  4. ^ Bobbejaan Schoepen, a Flemish entertainer – Histories documentary, 4 January 2001 (Vlaamse Radio- en Televisieomroep).
  5. ^ Verduyn, Ludwig. "De 200 rijkste Belgen", Uitgeverij Van Halewyck Leuven, 2000.