Tjeerd-Pieter David Oosterhuis (; born 25 December 1971), also known as TJ Oosterhuis, is a Dutch musician, songwriter and producer known internationally for his chart topping work with Madcon, Kelly Rowland and Estelle. His production of Freaky Like Me for Madcon was a number 1 hit Norway. It went four times platinum there and received a gold certification in Germany.
He is the son of writer, theologian and former priest Huub Oosterhuis. With his younger sister and singer Trijntje Oosterhuis, Tjeerd formed the mid-1990s band Total Touch.
After Total Touch disbanded in 1997 Oosterhuis founded a music production company, DEMP, and produced the album Face to Face for his wife, Edsilia Rombley, and a solo album for his sister Trijntje. He has also worked with many other artists including Candy Dulfer, Mathilde Santing, K-otic, Gordon, Re-play, Di-rect, Alain Clark, Julian Thomas, Petra Berger, Hind, Henny Vrienten and Karin Bloemen. Throughout the years Oosterhuis has written, arranged and produced many tracks for (inter)national artists like Madcon, Ben Saunders and . A recent venture is the supergroup Ladies of Soul that premiered in 2014 for annual arena-shows in both the Netherlands and Belgium. It is formed around four famous Dutch singers: his sister Trijntje Oosterhuis (2014-2017),his wife Edsilia Rombley, Glennis Grace and Berget Lewis, plus saxophone-player and singer Candy Dulfer.
He has made music for various commercials, movies and television programmes. By June 2022, he started releasing neo-classical piano music though the Andante Piano label under his own name.
Early life
Oosterhuis was born and raised in Amsterdam, the Netherlands in a family of creative professionals. His mother Jozefien Melief is a classical violin player. His father Huub Oosterhuis, a former priest, is a theologian, poet and church music lyricist. At a very early age Oosterhuis discovers the piano and from age seven he receives formal piano lessons, being classically trained at first. He is challenged regularly to make compositions to his father's newly written lyrics thus learning to create melodies still being in his teens. His younger sister Trijntje Oosterhuis develops herself as a saxophone player and singer. Together they start making popular music from their early formative years.
Career
1990s
In 1990, Oosterhuis formed the band Total Touch with his sister Trijntje and, in 1991, they participate in the , then the most important amateur musician contest in the Netherlands. Tjeerd is the main composer and producer of the band, as well as being the bandleader and keyboard player. Total Touch is offered a record deal in 1995 and their debut album Total Touch is released in 1997. It features a mixture of pop, soul, R&B and funk. The first single "Touch Me There" becomes a summer hit and goes platinum, selling over 100,000 copies in its first month. With eventual sales of over 500,000 copies, the album becomes one of the most successful ever debuts in Dutch musical history.
The next album This Way is their first number-one in the charts and grows equally successful, although the album is not well known internationally. Both albums and several singles are resulting in a total sales of over 1,000,000 copies combined.
After a short hiatus Tjeerd and Trijntje decide to go their separate ways. Trijntje went on to develop herself as a solo singer, singing both in Dutch as in English. Tjeerd is starting to focus more on his abilities as a songwriter, arranger and producer.
By 1997 Tjeerd Oosterhuis has already started his own studio and production company DEMP Music in Amsterdam as well as a publishing company called DEMP Songs. Next to his work as a composer, he starts producing external artists. Due to his succes with Total Touch, many artists find their way to his studio's. Next to working with his sister Trijntje he does productions with and for Dutch artists like Edsilia Rombley, Candy Dulfer, Mathilde Santing, Gordon, Romeo, Re-Play, Di-rect, Hind, Henny Vrienten and Karin Bloemen. Oosterhuis also collaborates with several international composers and lyricists like Keith John (Stevie Wonder), Terry Cox en Marjorie Maye.