Kathleen Aerts facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Kathleen Aerts
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kathelijne Elisabeth Maria Aerts |
| Born | 18 June 1978 Geel, Belgium |
| Genres | Pop |
| Occupations | Singer, actress, host, musicalactress |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1998–present |
| Labels | Studio 100, Sony BMG (with K3) |
Kathleen Aerts (born June 18, 1978) is a Belgian singer, actress, and TV host. She is best known for being one of the original members of the super popular girl group K3.
Contents
Early Life and Music Beginnings
Kathleen Aerts was born in Geel, Belgium. She loved singing and music from a very young age. Between 1992 and 1995, she was part of a group called Wonderful Game. She also appeared twice on the Flemish TV show Soundmixshow. In 1995, she placed third, and in 1997, she reached the semifinals.
Kathleen's Amazing Career
Becoming a Star with K3
From 1998 to 2009, Kathleen was a key member of the very successful girl group K3. The group was first planned to be like the Spice Girls in Flanders. But they soon became famous for their fun songs for children. K3 was made up of three young women: Kathleen Aerts, Karen Damen, and Kristel Verbeke.
K3 became super popular after their song "Heyah Mama" came out. In 2002, a company called Studio 100 took over the group. They helped K3 become even bigger. K3 then had lots of merchandise, movies, TV shows, and books.
Solo Adventures and New Music
In 2009, Kathleen decided to leave K3 and start her own music career. Her first solo song was "Zumba Yade." She worked with Unicef on this song. It did very well, reaching the top 3 in the Dutch Single Top 100. It also made it into the top 20 in Flanders, Belgium. She sold over 10,000 CDs in Belgium and the Netherlands.
In November 2009, Kathleen released her first solo album, Kathleen in symfonie. This album had twelve songs. She even sang a duet with Danny de Munk. Kathleen made sure that some of the money from her album went to Unicef. She decided this after visiting South Africa.
Back to Children's Music and TV
In 2010, Kathleen joined a group called KetnetBand. That same year, she also went back to making music for kids. She released a song called "Boerderij blues" (which means "Farm blues"). She later released three more songs for children.
In 2007, a wax figure of Kathleen Aerts was put in the Madame Tussauds museum in Amsterdam. It was placed next to the wax figures of the other two original K3 members.
Singing in Afrikaans and Writing Books
In 2016, Kathleen released "Die roos." This was her first song in Afrikaans, a language spoken in South Africa. It was a new version of a famous song by Ann Christy. A year later, she recorded another Afrikaans song called "Afrika." This song was also in the movie F.C. De Kampioenen 3: Forever. In September 2017, she published her third book, Lilly en Max in de wereld van oma.
The Masked Singer
In 2020, Kathleen took part in the TV show The Masked Singer. She performed as the character "Mermaid." In this show, judges try to guess who the masked singer is. Kathleen was reunited with Karen Damen, her former K3 bandmate, who was a judge on the show. Karen correctly guessed that Kathleen was the Mermaid!
Kathleen's Family Life
Kathleen Aerts married Steven van Hoof, who is a police officer, in 2010. Their first son was born in January 2011. Their second son was born in December 2013. In 2015, Kathleen and her family moved to Paarl, South Africa. Her mother also moved with them.
Books by Kathleen
- 2009: Mijn leven als K1 (This book is about her life as a member of K3.)
- 2015: Voor altijd mijn mama. Leven met jongdementie (This book talks about living with early-onset dementia.)
- 2017: Lilly en Max in de wereld van Oma (This is her third book.)
Musicals Kathleen Has Been In
Kathleen has performed in several musicals:
- 1998: Sneeuwwitje (She played Snow White)
- 2002: Doornroosje (She was one of the good fairies in Sleeping Beauty)
- 2003: De drie biggetjes (She played Knorri, one of the Three little pigs)
- 2005: De kleine zeemeermin (She was in The Little Mermaid)
- 2007: De drie biggetjes (She played Knorri again)
Films and TV Shows
Kathleen has been in many films and TV shows.
Films
| Film | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
| 2002 | K3 in Zwitserland | Kathleen | Main role |
| 2003 | K3 in de Ardennen | Kathleen | Main role |
| 2004 | K3 en het Magische Medaillon | Kathleen | First K3 movie for theaters |
| 2006 | K3 en het Ijsprinsesje | Kathleen | Main role |
| Piet Piraat en het Vliegende Schip | The Yellow Flesh-eating Plant | Voice only | |
| 2007 | K3 en de Kattenprins | Kathleen | Main role |
| K3 in de sneeuw | Kathleen | Main role | |
| 2012 | Sint & Diego en de magische bron van Myra | Mother | Supporting role |
Television
| Television | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
| 1999 | Euosong 1999 | Herself | Candidate in a casting show |
| 2000 | Samson & Gert | Herself | Guest appearance in "K3 Komt Op Bezoek" |
| 2000–2005 | Top of the Pops NL | Herself | Appeared in 9 episodes |
| 2002 | Samson & Gert | Herself | Guest appearance in "K3 Komt Niet" |
| 2003–2009 | De Wereld van K3 | Herself | Host of a talk show |
| 2009–2010 | Ranking the stars | Herself | Appeared in 8 episodes |
| 2009 | K2 zoekt K3 | Herself | Guest appearance in a casting show |
| 2009 | Hit the road | Herself | Guest appearance in 3 episodes |
| 2009 | Junior Eurosong 2009 | Herself | Judge in a casting show |
| 2010 | My name is... | Herself | Judge in a talent show |
| 2012 | Junor Eurosong 2012 | Herself | Vocal coach in a casting show |
| 2013 | Vlaanderen muziekland | Herself | |
| 2013 | Op stap met Dirk Scheele | Herself | |
Kathleen's Music: Singles and Albums
Singles
| Year | Title | BE | NL | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Zumba Yade | 11 | 3 | With Soweto Gospel Choir, sold over 10,000 copies |
| 2012 | De sinterklaas polonaise | 14 | – | |
| 2012 | Feest voor iedereen | – | 59 | Featuring Diego Piet |
| 2013 | Hey Chicke | 15 | – | |
| 2013 | Vliegen | 17 | – | |
| 2013 | Juffrouw | 53 | – | |
| 2016 | De Roos | – | – | |
| 2017 | Afrika | – | – |
Albums
| Year | Title | BE | NL | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | Kathleen in symfonie | 21 | – | |
| 2012 | Dag Sinterklaasje | 14 | 53 | |
| 2013 | Vlinders | 24 | – |
Sources
- Chart Stats: K3, Ultratop (in Dutch)
- Chart Stats: K3, Dutch Charts (in Dutch)
- Kathleen Aerts gelukkiger dan ooit nu ze K3 heeft verlaten, Het Nieuwsblad (in Dutch)
- Ex-K3 Kathleen trouwt, Gazet van Antwerpen (in Dutch)
- AMSTERDAM - Voormalig K3-zangeres Kathleen Aerts wil voor kinderen blijven zingen. "Dat K3-verleden wis je niet zomaar uit. Afgelopen zomer heb ik veel opgetreden en het was duidelijk dat kinderen mij nog steeds in hun hart sluiten.", NU.nl (in Dutch)
