Frans Halsema is a Dutch singer with a varied background, including cabaret, pop, ballads, and musical theater, whose career began in the 1960s and carried on to the time of his death in the early '80s. Born Franciscus Halsema on September 1, 1939, in Amsterdam, Netherlands, he got his start as a cabaret singer in the early '60s. During the latter half of the 1960s he began to make his mark as a recording artist, most notably collaborating with fellow Dutch singer Gerard Cox on the album Met Blijdschap Geven Wij Kennis (1969). He peaked in popularity during the 1970s, when he collaborated with Cox again on the album Wat Je Zegt Ben Je Zelf (1974) and scored a hit single in 1977 with "Vluchten Kan Niet Meer," a duet with Jenny Arean. Halsema remained active in the early '80s, though his popularity as a recording artist had waned by the time of his death on February 24, 1984. In the years following his death, various greatest-hits compilations were released, among them Frans Halsema 1939-1984 (1984), Voor Haar (1994), Frans Halsema en Gerard Cox Voor Altijd (2003), and Springlevend (2009). ~ Jason Birchmeier