Which song do you want to play at your own goodbye anyway?
“Child of the Devil of Jebroer.”
Why this particular number?
“For years this song has been on my list for my funeral and it still hasn’tmade room for another. And not because I actually think I’m a child of thedevil, but the beat, the lyrics, all together makes me see how my funeral isgoing. I want people to dance on the chairs and the music on 100.
I work in the funeral and hear a lot of songs passing by. Andrea Bocelli isbeautiful, but the beat and energy of this song immediately set the tone forhow I want my goodbye to go, so this is the song to play when I enter. He alsosings, “Mama you don’t have to cry” and “party like every day is the last.”That’s how I am in life, so I think it’s a nice message.”
And what does it say about your life?
“I don’t like to be in the spotlight, but I do want a grand funeral. I’mdisappointed that I can’t be there myself, because I think it will be verycool. As a child I already had a fascination with death , and I already knew Iwanted to be a funeral director at the age of 15. At 21 I became a mother andhad an administrative job, but now I have succeeded.
I think details are important at a funeral, there must be something personalin it. I myself sometimes get emotional during a service, but I consciouslyput that aside. Later in the car I put on a nice whine record. Last year myuncle and my aunt passed away six weeks apart, that was tough. When I playGray by Jaap Reesema, or Today by Baas B. it brings me back to that loss andthen it flows naturally. The latter contains the sentence: ‘If love could healyou, you were better yesterday’. Beautiful.
People often don’t know where to start thinking about and telling what theirgoodbye should look like. That’s why I made a funeral planner. This bookcovers everything. Buried or cremated? What music and what people? Where andwhat do we serve? There is so much that people can get lost in it, so I’mhappy to lend a hand.”
Where do you prefer to listen to music?
“In the car, because I’m often alone there and then I don’t have to takeanyone into account. Volume full and sing along, wonderful!”
How many lists do you have on Spotify?
“I have a list ‘for ever’, that is my funeral music. There are two songs onit, Child of the Devil anyway and a song by Maan. The rest can be supplementedby my family. In the end, it is mainly their farewell, of course, so I thinkit is important that they can shape this themselves. At our house we talk alot about death. Last week my son asked if I would also arrange his funeral,but of course that is not possible. I can talk about death with everyone, butwith your own child it is a bit different. The idea alone.”
What is your guilty pleasure?
“Bar numbers. I love Dutch sing-alongs. If I want to sing along, I always puton Mart Hoogkamer, or Hazes.”
You can find Danielle ‘s booklet on Instagram as @ Just plain Dan .