Henk van Engen
As a multicam director, Henk van Engen has been shaping the way live music is depicted for decades.He was behind the buttons in the Lowlands-Alpha, and made the registration of Goldband (2.1 million views), he did everything from VPRO On Stage to North Sea Jazz to Pinkpop, he lifted the idea of live music TV to a higher level with Stromae at Matthijs Gaat Door, and he filmed shows such as Vrienden van Amstel and DI-RECT in Ahoy. If you ever watch Dutch concert videos, there is about a 100 percent chance that you have seen (and enjoyed) something from Henk.
Justin Verkijk
There are hardly any journalists who focus purely on dance in the Netherlands. Even though that is one of the most popular genres! That makes the work of presenter/all-rounder Justin Verkijk even more refreshing. For the podcast Bakkie Bakkie (with Steven van Lummel) he does wonderful, in-depth and humorous interviews with both superstars (Armin van Buuren!) and underground DJs. Verkijk also presents the Lowlands podcast, has his own show on 3FM (The Beat) and created the podcast Als Muren Konden Praten about legendary Dutch clubs. This makes him the leading advocate for dance in the Netherlands in 2024 (and one with a lot of humour!). Also nice: while many music media makers don't know what to do with Tiktok, Verkijk throws himself into it with dedication.
Ouassima Tajmout
Over the past ten years, Ouassima has become one of the best-known faces at FunX. She was one of the first to conduct longer interviews with hip-hop artists on air, and also managed to successfully distribute them online. She has also devised, developed and presented many successful interview formats: Van Straat Naar Platina and Beats Tikken Met, for example. She interviewed world stars such as Cardi B, French Montana and J. Balvin, but last year she especially stood out with Back To The Roots with Emms, in which she travels to Cape Verde with the Broederliefde artist. Social involvement always shines through in her work.
- Veronica van Hoogdalem (winner of the 2022 Pop Media Prijs)
- Timo Pisart (3voor12)
- Chanelva Rier (zendermanager FunX)
- Tim van der Zalm (Labeltje Labeltje)
The jury for the Pop Media Prijs consists of a diverse range of industry professionals – including musicians, music venue/festival representatives, journalists or press members with experience in written press, radio, TV, documentaries and online media. All jury members must be aware of recent developments in the media and pop music industries. Finally, it is a tradition that the winner of last year’s edition takes a one-time seat as a member of the jury.
The Pop Media Prijs is made possible in part by a contribution from the Sena Performers Fund.
