Biography

1958
(7 september)
Nadieh is born on sunday the 7th of september 1958 at 5:10 AM on the address Hugo de Grootstraat 29 in The Hague in The Netherlands. Her full name is Karin Francine Anne Meis. She's got three older brothers, Frans, Fred and Edu (who dies february 2007) and a younger sister Manon 'Nonny'. Her father Frans Herman Meis is an engineer born in Indonesia and her mother Wil Donck comes from Scheveningen in The Hague.

The Sixties
At the age of 3, in 1961, the family moves to Leiderdorp. Nadieh is 11 years old when she steals her brothers guitar and learns to play, teached by Jim ten Boske. She already writes very mature poetry for her age. She's a very self-willed an clever kid.
Nadieh watches rehearsels of the band Earth and Fire, with singer Jerney Kaagman - the woman that will hand out Nadieh an important music prize years later. Nadieh goes to school in Leiden.

The Seventies
Nadieh's first boyfriend dies after an accident when she is 17. Years later she sings the song 'Onno' about him. She joins neighbour Marja to concerts of her bahá'í music group Great Day. Nadieh sings in churches and starts to go to meetings of the baha'i faith. She meets Sam Murray and she follows him to the US. It doesn't work out. Then she falls in love with her future husband: an Iranian chemistry teacher called Zia'u'llah Reyhani.
Nadieh tries two educations at the university: Arabic languages and Psychology. But she stops because she would rather play music in bands, sing backing vocals and perform solo in bars.

 14th of september 1979
Nadieh marries Zia Reyhani and she moves in with him at the Admiraliteitslaan 816 in the city of Den Bosch.

1980
Together with Kees Buenen Nadieh sings in the bands De Dupe and The Bill Bradley Band. Their hits are called 'Ik wil de straat terug', 'Stille Willie' and 'Hallo je spreekt met Karin'.

1981
(17th of november)
Daughter Nadiè Reyhani is born at home in Den Bosch. Later Nadieh will record the song 'Nana' for her. Nadiè is also a singer and at concerts she likes to perform her mothers song 'Castles'. At the age of 25 she has already brought out 2 albums with folky songs.
1985
(28th of october)
Son Rafi Benjamin Vincent Reyhani is born at home in Den Bosch. 'Benjamin' is about him. His favorite song by his mother is 'De Paardenhoeve'. He's a gifted guitarplayer but can't combine this with singing. Nadieh finishes her demo's with Buenen. Joseph Schamp gives the Wisseloord Studio's a demo of Nadieh. Then she's allowed to record in the free time of the studio's.
1986
 After the first single 'Right to change', 'Windforce 11' reaches the 23th place and stays 6 weeks in the Dutch Top 40 chart. Today the song is still placed in historical charts and people still remember it very well. It is the kind of song that keeps playing in your head once you've heard it. Not many people know that the song is about the founder of the baha'i faith. Read more about the lyrics. The video is made in Israel. Manager Inge Jagt (formerly Inge Werner) joins Nadieh, they're best friends.
1987
Hans Vermeulen and Kees Buenen produce Nadieh's debut album 'Land of Tá' that wins two important music prizes, a Zilveren Harp and an Edison Music Award. She also wins the Best Singers Award at the Yamaha World Songfestival with 'Haifa Blue'. Nadieh later returns to Japan with her manager Inge Jagt and Edward Reekers (singer of Kayak) to perform at a festival at Lake Biwa in front of 12.000 people. The 4th of march the very first babygirl is named after Nadieh. Many will follow.
1988
 Nadieh receives a CD Award for her second album 'Company of Fools'. Stuart en Bradley James write and produce three songs on this album. A few hitsongs are 'Katoozazaï', 'Dance to the rythm' and 'Haifa Blue'. Nadieh divorces her husband Zia Reyhani.

1989
 Inspired by the Italian rocksinger Gianna Nannini, who Nadieh has met in Japan, Nadieh wants to make a more noisy record than the poetic popsongs on her last two albums. Larry Lee produces 'No way back'. The famous Dutch singer Ruth Jacott sings backing vocals. The song 'Splendid Morning' is a duet with Colin Blunstone. Both divorced, Nadieh gets close with Bart Sloothaak, director of the Wisseloord Studios. He becomes her manager.

1990
Nadieh's sister Manon marries Marc van Veenendaal.
1991
 Nadieh returns to her softer folky music style. Joey Balin produces her fourth album 'Eye on the Waves ' with wellknown guestmusicians like drummer Curt Cress en bass player Pino Palladino. The song 'Words' reaches 34th place in the Top 40 and stays in it for 3 weeks. Still, apart from Japan, there is no international success alltough Nadieh performs a lot on German television and also visits the US.

1992
 Nadieh is fed up with showbusiness. She moves with her children and Bart Sloothaak to the little rural village Rhenoy in the Dutch area called Betuwe. She keeps on making music in her own studio, totally independent. She loves horses, and when she meets horse riding teacher Karla 'Karrie' Kemp, they move in together and start taking care of sick horses. Bart then moves out.

1994
Nadieh brings out the album 'On my own' on a small label. She is guestmusician at Ad Vanderveen's record 'Sooner or later' produced by Bart. Nadieh She also writes the lyrics of 'Ik sta', originally 'Là-Bas', a french duet by Jean-Jacques Goldman and Sirima. Famous Goldman discovered Sirima singing in the subway. Nadieh sings this together with Erik Mesie, a known Dutch singer of the band Toontje Lager. Like Nadieh a few years later, Sirima dies at a very young age. A jealous boyfriend stabs her just three weeks after her debut album came out.

1995
Nadieh starts a tour with intimite, acoustic performances in theatres. It's just her sister Nonny and her. They sing and play guitar. Ruth Jacott records Nadieh's song 'Leef me' on her album 'Geheimen'. On november 9th Nadieh plays er very last concert. On the last day of the year Nadieh's father Frans Herman Meis dies at the age of 75.

1996
(5th of april)
January 4th Nadieh burries her father in Leiderdorp. Few weeks later her grandmother Francina Anna Meis-Liedermooy dies. Then Nadieh gets sick. She has breastcancer and in the evening of april 5th (Good Friday) after 8 PM Nadieh dies in a hospital in Utrecht from a lungembolism at the age of 37. She is burried at the cemetary right next to her house at the Lingedijk 96 in Rhenoy. On the backside of the gravestone there is written a beautiful baha'i text of Baha'ulla.

1997
(3d of september)
Nadieh's sister Manon gives birth to her first son Jordi van Veenendaal in Leiderdorp.

1999
 Fans start The Nadieh Foundation and bring out an album of Dutch songs that weren't published yet. It is called 'Leef me'.
2000
(16th of september)
Nadieh's sister Manon gives birth to a second son Mischa Valentino van Veenendaal in Leiderdorp.

2005
Nadieh's daughter Nadiè Reyhani and band bring out their folk-cd 'Colors of Grey'.
2006
Ten years after Nadieh's death, the Nadieh Foundation brings out a second album: 'Go stand'. All songs are in English and some are recorded live. There is also an Elton John song on it: 'I need you to turn to'. And a duet of Nadieh and her daughter Nadiè called 'More than a woman', which they made for mother's day for Nadieh's mother and Nadiè's grandmother. Also album 'On my own' is published again because more and more people from all over the world are interested in Nadieh's work.

2007
AD Haagsche Courant and Zij aan Zij Magazine publish articles about Nadieh and 'Go Stand'. Also journalist Marcel Linssen, who has known Nadieh during her life, plans on making an article. Many regional radiostations play songs from 'Go Stand'.

Nadieh's oldest brother Edu dies of cancer and a heart attack in february.

A second album of Nadiè will be out soon.

Friends and familymembers of Nadieh are being interviewed for a biography. Do you have comments for this biography? E-mail to tanyavdspek@hotmail.com please.
 

 

Many special thanks to Nadieh's loved ones, Haye van den Oever, Paul Smit and many others for their support, contributions and photographs!

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