Marco Borsato

Marco Roberto Borsato (born 21 December 1966) is a Dutch singer.

Borsato's career as a musician debuted in 1990, when he won the Dutch talent show Soundmixshow hosted by Henny Huisman with his rendition of Billy Vera's "At This Moment."

At the time, he was still working as a chef.

The accomplishment allowed him to sign a record deal, where he released three albums sung in the Italian language: Emozioni, Sento and Giorno per giorno.

Born in Alkmaar, North Holland, he started performing in Italian before switching to Dutch in 1994.

He has consistently been one of the most successful and biggest-grossing artists in the Netherlands and Belgium for the past thirty years.

Borsato achieved 15 number-one singles in the Netherlands, the second-most all-time behind The Beatles' 16.

In 1994, his song "Dromen Zijn Bedrog" spent a then-record 12 weeks at number one, a feat which stood for 17 years.

It still remains the longest-running Dutch language number-one song ever.

Borsato earned newfound popularity in 1994, when he began to sing songs in Dutch, as recommended by his songwriting partner John Ewbank.

Borsato also has recorded 11 number-one albums in the Netherlands, all certified at least Platinum, with every eligible studio album of his from 1995 to 2013 debuting at number one on the Dutch album charts.

Borsato also has six number-one albums in Belgium.

Despite his long run of commercial success, his music was removed from all Dutch public radio stations' playlists in 2022 after sexual assault allegations relating to The Voice of Holland scandal.

Borsato was charged with child sexual abuse in 2023.

Marco Roberto Borsato was born in the Wilhelmina Hospital in Alkmaar as the son of Roberto Borsato and Mary de Graaf.

He has a brother, Armando, and a sister, Sylvana.

His father is Italian and the family moved to Italy, where the father started a restaurant in Garda.

Borsato spent a significant amount of time in Italy and speaks fluent Italian.

When Borsato was twelve years old, he decided he wanted to be a sushi chef.

Borsato, though brought up with Italian cuisine, felt a great love for this cuisine.

When he was older, he went to school during the week and worked in a restaurant during the weekends.

During his conscription, he was bound to the cavalry, where he was conscripted as a NCO.

His fifth album Als geen ander, released in 1995, was certified 4× Platinum and became his first number-one album in the Netherlands.

It produced four singles, three of which reached the top ten in the Netherlands.

In 1997, Borsato released De waarheid, which also debuted at number one in the Netherlands and stayed there for seven weeks.

It would be certified 6× Platinum.

His seventh album De bestemming followed shortly after in 1998, debuting at number one in the Netherlands and staying there for four weeks.

It is certified 5× Platinum.

The album's title track became his third number one single on the Dutch Top 40.

"Binnen", the lead single to Borsato's eighth album Luid en duidelijk, reached number one in 1999, and the album came out in early 2000, to another number-one debut and eight weeks atop the albums chart.

It is certified 5× Platinum.

"Lopen op het water", the lead single to Borsato's greatest hits album Onderweg, became his fifth number-one single in 2001.

Between 2003 and 2008, Borsato became the first artist to record nine consecutive number-one singles on the Dutch charts.

Beginning in 2003, with "Afscheid nemen bestaat niet" and ending in 2008 with "Dochters", Borsato recorded nine consecutive number-one singles on the Dutch singles charts, an accomplishment which remains unmatched to this day.

Borsato's ninth album Zien was released in 2004 on DVD only and was certified 4× Platinum.

It produced three number-one singles, including "Wat zou je doen?"

featuring Dutch rapper Ali B.

In 2006, Borsato released a live album, Symphonica in Rosso, which also saw all three of its singles reach number one in the Netherlands.

This included a cover of "Because We Believe" featuring Andrea Bocelli and "Every Time I Think of You" featuring British singer-songwriter Lucie Silvas.

His first Dutch-language single "Dromen Zijn Bedrog" ("Dreams Are Deceptive”) reached number one in the Netherlands and stayed there for 12 weeks, selling over 240,000 copies. It broke the record for longest time spent at number one on the Dutch chart. Borsato held the record until 2011, when "Balada" by Gusttavo Lima spent 13 weeks at number one. His second single "Waarom Nou Jij" also reached number one on the Dutch Top 40.