Emma on Instagram, November 4th, 2025 I’ve been in Málaga since yesterday, but not on vacation, rather for a hospital visit. I made an appointment here with a vascular surgeon. For more than six months now, I’ve been experiencing a lot of additional symptoms. At first, I thought it was just gastroparesis symptoms, but it got worse and also appeared in places I’d never had them before. So, I started asking around, googling, and pretty soon I came across vascular syndromes. These are syndromes that affect the blood vessels in the organs. The blood vessels are so tight that they constrict the entrances and passages, preventing the organs from functioning properly and receiving enough blood. Many fellow sufferers who have gastroparesis also had these syndromes and went to see this doctor in Málaga. Today I had my appointment. He was a very nice doctor and we finally had a good conversation. But because I am still a minor, he said that I have to have certain tests done in the Netherlands and not here in Málaga. So, in the end, I still don't know very much, but it's nice to finally have a good conversation with a doctor. I'll keep you posted.

Frustration with healthcare in the Netherlands Emma Kok suffers from gastroparesis, a chronic condition in which her stomach is partially paralyzed. She lives largely on tube feeding and struggles with severe pain daily. In previous interviews, she explained how difficult it is to live with the disease. "It's stabbing pains, aches, a cold feeling, cramps, it's not just a simple stomach ache like you get when you just have the flu," she said previously on RTL Boulevard. The Limburg singer, who rose to international fame after her performance with André Rieu and her rendition of Voilà, previously expressed her dissatisfaction with medical care in the Netherlands. In August, she told Shownieuws: "I've been experiencing a lot of symptoms from my illness lately. It can be very up and down." At the time, she explained that she didn't feel taken seriously by her doctors. "If they say: Yes, you send the same nerves from your brain to your gastrointestinal tract... We don't call that "all in your head" anymore, but it has a different name now." Emma explained that she no longer has contact with her doctor. "That bond is, of course, not as strong anymore. You basically just leave. That bond is broken. That's not nice when you don't have a good relationship with your doctor." Because she no longer had confidence in Dutch healthcare, she decided to contact a doctor in Spain. "There's a doctor in Málaga, who actually looks much further. So that's very helpful. We're doing some research on that now," she said at the time. Now that she's actually been to Málaga, Emma seems hopeful. Although she doesn't have any answers yet, she finally feels understood. "Finally, a good conversation with a doctor," she emphasizes in her new post.

Emma at sunset in Málaga

Limburger, December 2, 2025 Photo by Marcel van Hoorn Emma Kok bids farewell to André Rieu: "After the Christmas concerts, I'm starting a new chapter in my life." Singer Emma Kok has sung Voilà for the last time. Last weekend was her last show on tour with André Rieu. The 17-year-old singer announced this on Instagram. In her post, she reflects on the song that launched her career. "Voilà, it all started with that one word, that one word turned my life upside down in the best way possible! Because of that one word, my dream came true. Voilà!" she writes. Although the tour with Rieu has now concluded, Emma still has a few performances coming up: the Christmas concerts at the MECC in Maastricht. Emma Kok on Instagram: Voilà, that one word started it all. That one word turned my life upside down in the best way possible! That one word made my dream come true. Voilà! In 2023, André and I went viral with Voilà. It now has over 100 million views on YouTube. I have sung Voilà with André and his wonderful orchestra 166 times all over the world. Every night, André told my story and showed me the world. After two and a half years, this wonderful adventure is coming to an end. Last night was the last time I sang Voilà with André on tour. I can’t describe how much André and his orchestra mean to me and have meant to me over the past few years. I love them with all my heart. Of course, the year isn’t over yet because we still have the Christmas concerts at the MECC Maastricht. Thank you, dear André, for EVERYTHING!! After the Christmas concerts, I will start a new chapter in my life. More about that next week... Pierre Rieu's Response "Emma leaving after the Christmas concerts feels a bit displaced. She felt like family; in fact, she is family. From the very first moment in the studio, it was clear how special she is. She blew us away with her energy. We experienced something fantastic together. To me, Emma felt like the little sister I never had. I'm especially curious about what she'll do in the future. Her solo career—I'm really looking forward to that. And if she needs advice, she can always call us. Because you never leave our family forever."

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December 3, 2025, article from L1 Nieuws. By Sterre Schlicher Translated by Diana D.Le Photo: Jean-Pierre Geusens. After the Christmas concerts, the chapter with Rieu closes for Emma Kok: “But never say never.” Emma Kok is going to stop performing with André Rieu. After traveling around the world with the violinist for two and a half years, she is going to pursue her own path. Last week, she concluded her tour with André Rieu. “Now just the Christmas concerts, and then that chapter will be over,” says the singer. Life turned upside down “That first time performing Voilà on the Vrijthof with André is the most special moment of the past 2.5 years. My whole life was turned upside down by that one performance, in the best possible way,” says Emma. The video of the performance went viral on YouTube and has now been viewed more than 100 million times. Magic It was the beginning of her adventure with a series of tours around the world. “André showed me the world and told my story; that's priceless.” Since that first evening, she has sung the song 166 times. “I never really got tired of singing the same song over and over again. Maybe that's the magic of the song.” Conversation It wasn't an abrupt decision to stop performing with Rieu, Emma explains. “We never actually had a conversation about me wanting to stop or André wanting that, but that's just how it turned out. In 2023, I was asked to go on tour for a year. And at the end of the year, we decided to add another year, and that would be it.” Rest But before that happens, André and Emma will be performing together on stage this month for the Christmas concerts at the MECC, which start this coming weekend. Emma will be performing every night, even though this is very demanding on her health. “Unfortunately, I still have a lot of symptoms, but so far I'm managing to keep going. I'm making sure I get plenty of rest. André makes sure of that too.” Family According to the singer, she has ended up in a real family. "‘You never really leave,’ Pierre (ed. Rieu) said to me. Every day with Rieu was a party, even on the bus and at after-parties. I won't see them every day anymore, but that bond will never be lost. And never say never that we'll be on stage together again." Her own thing Emma is going to focus on something of her own, which she can't share much about yet. “I'll share more about that next Monday. It's my own thing, something to do with music. That's all I can say about it for now. And for the next month, I'm going to enjoy the Christmas concerts to the fullest.”

December 3, 2025, article from De Limburger. By Ivar Hoekstra Photos: Marcel van Hoorn Translation: Diana D. Le Emma Kok's departure is a blow for André Rieu, but after her solo success at the Concertgebouw, it's a logical step: “She feels like family.” The departure of Emma Kok with the orchestra of André Rieu may come as a surprise to many, but after her successful solo concerts in October in the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, it became clear that the 17-year- old singer is ready for a solo career. At the rehearsal for the Christmas concerts Tuesday evening in the studio of André Rieu, a copy of Emma Kok's recently published biography was in the violin box of one of the violinists: Never lose hope. It’s a detail, but when orchestra members take your biography to work, it shows how strongly your status as a singer has grown. In two and a half years, Emma Kok, more than any other singer in the orchestra of Rieu, grew into the star next to a star. Honor who deserves honor, it was Pierre Rieu who saw the enormous potential of the young singer from Kerkrade (town in Limburg) when he watched an episode of the TV program Ministars in which she sang the song Voilà and immediately knew: she has to come to us. Energy It turned out to be a huge success. The first time Kok sang the song "Voilà" on the Vrijthof in the summer of 2023, it sent shockwaves not only through Maastricht but across the entire world. Meanwhile, the clip of that performance on YouTube has already been viewed more than a hundred million times. How big the impact of Kok was, they already realized at Rieu after her first rehearsal in the studio. “We were completely blown away by the enormous energy that came loose,” said Pierre Rieu. So, it makes sense that after Vrijthof concert, that Rieu asked Kok to join his orchestra. It gave the singer the opportunity to develop under the wing of the violinist and Rieu had a star with it. A star who is ready to stand on her own after two and a half years. Those who saw the 17-year-old Emma Kok in action last October during her two sold-out solo concerts in the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, saw that immediately. That success has been the litmus test for Kok: can I handle it solo? Her illness also plays a role in this, which causes her to balance in terms of energy. During the performances with Rieu, rest before and immediately after her vocals is a must. And where her input at Rieu's performances is limited to a few songs, Kok had to fill an hour and a half in the Concertgebouw. That this, although with a break and help from guest artists, succeeded so well, must have given her confidence a boost: my body can handle this. Ambitions How exactly her solo career will look like, Kok is still silent about that. But it is clear that her ambitions lie with the musical genre and that she also dreams of participating in the Eurovision Song Contest. Yes, she is only 17 years old and it really would not have been crazy if she had stayed with Rieu a little longer. But here it plays a role that because of her illness she cannot do career planning. “Because I don’t know how that disease manifests itself, it gets better, worse, or remains stable? Unfortunately, no one can say anything meaningful about that," she said. It means that she lives by the day when she is concerned: getting as much out of it in the here-and-now. “I don’t know how I’m going to do with my illness in five years.” So, it is logical that she can no longer and will not wait for her solo career. Displaced The orchestra of Rieu is fully understood. André Rieu himself attended her solo concert in the Concertgebouw and then let us know how proud he was of his protégé. Although he probably already knew that the Christmas concerts at the MECC in Maastricht would be the last with Emma Kok on his stage. Yes, everyone at Rieu wholeheartedly awards the Kerkraadse a solo career. But the fact that her departure is coming hard is evident from the words of Pierre Rieu. “The fact that Emma is leaving us gives a displaced feeling. She felt like family, in fact: she is family. To me, Emma felt like the sister I never had. I am especially curious what she will do next. Her solo career, I’m really looking forward to that.” The loss of such a talent in his orchestra will be a bit of a drag on at Rieu. You won't find another Emma Kok anytime soon; talents of this caliber only come along once every few decades. The time they are with you, you should especially cherish in the knowledge that they will leave you sooner or later because their star is bright enough to shine alone.

Emma Kok is madly in love: meet her boyfriend December 4, 2025 Girlscene Magazine; Article by Chloë Emma Kok is head over heels in love and for a long time preferred to keep her new love out of the spotlight. But a keen eye managed to spot him, and eventually he proudly confirmed the relationship himself. This is Emma Kok's boyfriend! Emma in the spotlight Emma Kok is currently in the spotlight. It makes sense, because besides her incredible singing talent, she also happens to have a wonderful writing style. In her book "Emma, Never Lose Hope," she candidly discusses her condition, gastroparesis, and shows how strong, positive, and inspiring she is. A real go- getter and a ray of sunshine. And apparently, we weren't the only ones who saw this, because her boyfriend also fell head over heels for her. Time to get to know him better! Emma Kok's Boyfriend The man who has captured Emma's heart is none other than Jort Knoop! He's not in the public eye himself—he works as an elementary school teacher—and the couple usually prefers to keep their relationship private. But during Emma's book launch, the Shownieuws cameraman had a sharp eye: he spotted Jort next to Emma's parents. Well... it almost had to be her boyfriend. And Jort even confirmed it in front of the rolling cameras. Was it really her intention to share this? That remains a bit unclear. Emma herself prefers to keep her love life private. Oops! Love at first sight We don't know much about Jort, because his Instagram is private and the couple doesn't share much. But he did reveal one romantic detail. The two met during 538 (radio broadcaster) King's Day. Jort saw Emma in the VIP section and was immediately smitten. Who is this beautiful woman? He approached her, they started talking... and the rest is history. Pure love at first sight. Relationship gossip In her book, Emma subtly shares that she has a great love, her first boyfriend. Yet, gossip columns thought it was someone else, but that turned out to be completely wrong. The relationship Emma is referring to is now a thing of the past. So, Jort really is the one who stole her heart. Documentary Although the two prefer to keep their relationship out of the spotlight, one thing is absolutely clear: Jort is madly in love with Emma Kok. Perhaps we'll see him appear more often soon, for example in Emma's documentary. For now, we'll have to wait and see—but we're waiting with love.

December 4, 2025 article from de Volkskrant. By Roxanne Fish Photo by Ivo van der Bent Translation by Diana D. Le The week of Emma Kok: a book launch, two shows in the Concertgebouw, and three Christmas trees For singer Emma Kok, pain and frustration are daily costs, but this week she had so much positive distraction that she hardly suffered from that. For her gastroparesis (gastric paralysis) every day is a small struggle for Emma Kok (17). She is dependent on tube feeding for 22 hours a day and has a lot of pain. She can't eat. "A few licks of honey in a day, purely for the taste, that’s all." She constantly sees what she is missing in others. “Food is always available, so you are confronted with the harsh truth all day long. That's just really difficult.” But this week, the singer could take a hit. She still floated on a cloud of her book launch and two sold-out shows at the Concertgebouw, which were all she hoped for. "The moment I walked down those stairs in that dress, the guest artists, the orchestra, my brother (violist Enzo Kok, ed.) who was there, the choir: everything was right and was exactly as I had in mind. It was crazy, a dream that came true.” In one fell swoop, she went on tour with fellow Limburg native André Rieu, another dream that continues to come true. The star violinist is now like a grandfather to her. “We have built a special bond and he shows me the world. It is an incredible honor to be able to work with him.” This weekend, her first Christmas show with Rieu is on the program and she is more than ready for that. You would think that the prospect of Christmas is a torment for someone who can't eat, but Kok just can't wait. For at least a month, she has been sitting at home immersed in Christmas atmospheres. At the beginning of November, the first Christmas movies had already been watched and the trees were already – plural yes, no less than three. “If we do it, we’ll do it right.” What is called for: hundreds of lights, garlands, angels; the Christmas department of the Bijenkorf pales in comparison. "I decorated my own room, it makes me so happy." Even the sight of a sumptuous Christmas dinner can't compete with so much Christmas cheer. She'll take that as a bonus.

Emma Kok at her home in Kerkrade, Netherlands in December 2025