Joost is the recording name of Joost Klein, a Dutch rapper from Leeuwarden in the Netherlands. He is associated with hip hop, and his work also includes electro and gabber influences. He records under both Joost and his full name, Joost Klein, and also uses the alter egos jailbreak iphone now and internetcafe 247.

Early life and online beginnings

Joost is born in 1997 in Leeuwarden. He loses his father to cancer when he is twelve, and his mother dies of cardiac arrest less than a year later. After becoming orphaned at a young age, he turns to the internet and starts a YouTube channel called EenhoornJoost. His videos are known for surreal and often absurd humour, and he also makes a documentary in which he returns to Friesland and speaks about losing both parents as a child.

Music career

He begins making music on YouTube and SoundCloud, and his debut EP is Dakloos, which includes the songs “Dakloos” and “Zelfgemaakt”. His breakthrough comes with the mixtape Scandinavian Boy, whose title track becomes his biggest hit. He later works with Donnie, first on “René Froger” and then on the album M Van Marketing, which includes “Parmezaan & Linkerbaan”.

Joost’s first full album is Albino, which brings together earlier tracks including “Ome Robert” and “Meeuw” with new material. The album features the title track “Albino” as well as “Joost Klein” and “Bus Gemist”, which features Mick Spek. He later releases 1983, named after his brother’s birth year, Joost Klein 7, Albino Sports, Vol. 1 with Brunzyn, and Fryslân.

Eurovision and later releases

In 2023, Joost is announced as the Netherlands’ representative for the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmö. He reaches the final but is disqualified after a backstage incident involving a reported threatening movement towards a camerawoman, which is treated as a breach of the contest’s safe working environment rules.

After Eurovision, he releases the singles “Luchtballon”, “The Bird Song”, “TRAFIK!” featuring Käärijä, “Filthy Dog” and “Why Not???”. Several of these tracks appear on the album Unity, which also includes “United By Music” with Tommy Cash, “1” with Scooter, “Gabberland”, and his 2023 hit “Friesenjung”. He later releases further tracks and EPs under the names jailbreak iphone now and internetcafe 247, and creates Instagram profiles for those aliases.

He also releases the album Kleinkunst, which features horsegiirL, Vieze Asbak, Mark Forster and his alter egos jailbreak iphone now and internetcafe 247.