It is a scandal that makes a lot of noise. Now a week ago, the current season of The Voice of Holland has been suspended. A radical decision that follows the sexual assault charges worn on one of the coaches, rapper Ali B, but also about the show’s group leader, Jeroen Rietbergen. On January 20, the controversy suddenly swelled with the broadcast on YouTube of the show BOOS, which obtained new information.
A former candidateand The Voice notably agreed to testify, on condition of anonymity and with a distorted voice. She claims to have been raped by Ali B eight years ago. The artist would have at the time started kissing her after showing her around the studio. “I felt it was so powerful that I thought: what you want has to happen now“, she said. The tele-hook broadcaster has decided to fire Ali B and two complaints have been filed for sexual assault with prosecutors. The rapper for his part firmly denies the accusations concerning him.
In the show BOOS, 19 other women came to denounce the intimidating behavior of Jeroen Rietbergen against them. The 50-year-old producer meanwhile admitted through an official statement that he had “contact of a sexual nature with women involved in the program and WhatsApp messages of a sexual nature“. He then made the decision to resign. His companion, the presenter, Linda de Mol announced in the aftermath that she was leaving him and that she would stop working because of this “terrible nightmare“.
A “corrupt gang”
Note that Linda de Mol’s brother is none other than John de Mol, the “inventor” of reality TV with Big Brother in 1999. The latter admitted having been aware in 2019 of inappropriate messages sent to a candidate by Jeroen Rietbergen but having taken no action. If he feels “responsible” today, the 66-year-old billionaire denies having wanted “Keep quiet“the actions of his brother-in-law, with whom he has worked for eleven years. Recent events have left him behind”shocked“.
The Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte, intends to clarify this affair and has ordered a thorough investigation. At the same time, one of the coaches of The Voice of Holland, the singer Anouk, also resigned during the week, calling the program a “corrupt gang”.
As a reminder, The Voice of Holland is the founding version of the musical competition. Launched in 2010, the show was subsequently rolled out in several countries, including France.