Lars Sebastiaan Bos (born 3 October 1995), known professionally as Snelle, is a Dutch rapper and singer from Gorssel,

Gelderland Gelderland ( , ), also known as Guelders ( ) in English, is a Provinces of the Netherlands, province of the Netherlands, located in the centre-east of the country. With a total area of of which is water, it is the largest province of the Nethe ...

. He is known for his Dutch number-one singles "Reünie", "Smoorverliefd", "17 miljoen mensen" and "Blijven slapen", which topped the charts between 2019 and 2021.

Early life

Bos was born in

Deventer Deventer (; Sallaans dialect, Sallands: ) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Salland historical region of the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Overijssel, ...

. He grew up in Gorssel. Born with a

cleft lip A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nasal cavi ...

, he was bullied for his appearance. Bos studied at the Herman Brood Academie. He adopted the stage name "Snelle" (meaning "fast" in Dutch), because he gets drunk quickly when consuming alcohol.

Career

In 2019, Snelle saw a breakthrough. His singles "Scars" and "Plankgas" were certified Platinum. In September, "Reünie" reached number one on the

Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 () is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore radio, offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" ...

. The song and its music video were about the bullying that Snelle faced in his childhood over his cleft lip, emphasising that he will come out stronger. In January 2020, Snelle scored his second number-one hit with "Smoorverliefd". The song was developed in collaboration with Dutch insurance company Interpolis to warn youth about the dangers of texting while biking. His third came shortly after in March 2020 with "17 miljoen mensen", a new version of the Fluitsma & Van Tijn song "15 miljoen mensen". It was recorded with Davina Michelle live in an empty Rotterdam Ahoy during the beginning of the

COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands The COVID-19 pandemic in the Netherlands has resulted in confirmed cases of COVID-19 and deaths. The virus reached the Netherlands on 27 February 2020, when its first COVID-19 case was confirmed in Tilburg. It involved a 56-year-old Dutchman ...

. At one minute and 47 seconds long, it became the shortest number-one hit in Dutch history. In July 2020, Snelle was added as a judge to ''The Voice Kids''. In August, he collaborated with fellow

duo Suzan & Freek on the single "De overkant", a tribute to the province and the

Achterhoek The Achterhoek (; ) is a cultural region and COROP area in the Eastern Netherlands. Its name (meaning "rear-corner") is geographically appropriate because the area lies in the easternmost part of the province of Gelderland and therefore in the e ...

region. In 2021, Snelle had his biggest hit yet with "Blijven slapen", a collaboration with Maan that stayed at number one for ten weeks. A documentary about his life, ''Snelle: Zonder jas naar buiten'', premiered on

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

in April. In 2022, he debuted as a presenter on the show ''I Want Your Song''. He also served as a judge on the music competition series ''Ministars'' and on the competition series ''De Bondgenoot.''

Personal life

After becoming famous, Snelle moved to

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

, but he was often harassed by fans at his home. Thus, he moved back to his birthplace of

by early January 2021. In December 2024, he proposed to his girlfriend Sterre Kunzler in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Central Park Central Park is an urban park between the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods of Manhattan in New York City, and the first landscaped park in the United States. It is the List of parks in New York City, sixth-largest park in the ...

Early life

Career

Personal life

Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

Featured in

Other charted songs

References