Milk Inc.

Milk Inc.
Regi Penxten and Linda Mertens from Milk Inc. 2008
General information
Genre (s)	Vocal trance , trance
founding	1996
Website	http://www.milkinc.be
Current occupation
Keyboards, production , songwriting	Regi Penxten
Songwriting, production	Filip Vandueren
singing	Linda Mertens (since 2000)
former members
singing	Cornelia "Nikkie" van Lierop (1997)
singing	Sofie Winters (1997)
singing	Ann Vervoort (1997-2000)
Electric guitar	John Miles Jr. (1997-2001)

Milk Inc. (also known as Milk Incorporated) is a vocal trance band from Belgium . It currently consists of the producer and keyboardist Regi Penxten (born March 4, 1976 in Hasselt , Belgium), the singer Linda Mertens (born July 20, 1978 in Wilrijk , Belgium) and the producer Filip Vandueren (* 1976). In the studio and during live performances, the band has been supported by keyboardist Peter Schreurs and drummer Michael Schack since mid-2006 .

Artistic creation

Milk Inc. released their first single La Vache in April 1997 . At first only successful in France and England , they are now known in many European countries and the USA. Milk Inc. have released over 20 singles so far and have done several tours across Europe. Their music is characterized above all by a targeted emotional mood, which is generated through the use of suitable synthesizers and the vocals. In its early days, Milk Inc. also had a guitarist , which is extremely unusual for a trance group. Other instruments will also be used at your concerts. On the “Forever” tour in 2008, there were several drummers, guitarists and a saxophone player on stage, which contradicts the frequent criticism that Milk Inc.'s music comes “only from the computer”.

In 2014, Milk Inc. announced an indefinite hiatus because Linda Mertens had their first child. A comeback was planned for 2016 on the occasion of the 20th anniversary , but Mertens' daughter died of cancer in the spring of 2017 , so the band's activities are still paused.

former members

Nikkie van Lierop

Cornelia Anita Dominika van Lierop (born March 7, 1963 in Simmern , Germany) is mainly known under the name Nikki van Lierop or by her stage name Jade 4U and Nikki Mono. In the spring of 1997 Praga Khan made a remix of the song La Vache . Since Nikkie was the singer for Praga Khan at the time, she played her part: She was responsible for the vocals (text and melody), which can be heard in the remix. She can also be seen in the music video that was shot in England. After the song's resounding success, she sang in appearances on Milk Inc.'s first tour of France and Corsica. When a conflict arose between her, Regi and the then dancer Tamara, she left Milk Inc. to focus on Praga Khan (Praga Khan was enjoying success in the US at the time ).

Sofie Winters

Sofie Winters (born May 22, 1976 in Leuven , Belgium) replaced Nikkie for a few months. During her time at Milk Inc. she worked as a singer on the song Free your mind - she can also be seen in the accompanying video. Sofie Winter was then and is still working as a model and actress .

Ann Vervoort

The graphic designer Ann Vervoort (born March 10, 1977 - April 22, 2010) worked as a dancer for Pat Krimson before her time at Milk Inc. She was hired by Regi Penxten in 1997 to replace Sophie Winters as a singer for performances. Rumor has it that Ann never sang live on stage, but in fact Karine Boelaerts, who has already worked as a studio singer for other Belgian dance projects such as 2 Fabiola and Maurizzio. In mid-September 2000 she left Milk Inc. and went to Ibiza with her boyfriend at the time, Patrick Claesen, alias Pat Krimson (producer of 2 Fabiola, Nunca, Leopold3). There they founded the record company Benimusa Records. Ann was replaced by Linda Mertens, who is the singer of the formation to this day. After her relationship with Claesen ended in 2005, Vervoort returned to Belgium, her hometown of Limburg . Ann Vervoort died on April 22, 2010 at the age of 33.

John Miles Jr.

John Miles Jr. is the son of famous musician John Miles Sr . John studied pop music in England at Newcastle College of Music and has worked as a guitarist with well-known pop musicians, including Debbie Harry , Bryan Ferry , Joe Cocker and Andrea Bocelli . John has been writing the songs since joining in 1997 and has appeared on stage as a guitarist. With the first single after joining In My Eyes came back the commercial success that had remained after La Vache . This was in part due to John's influence as a songwriter impacted the style of the music. Combined with the voice of Ann Vervoort, all of the songs released became top 10 hits during his time at Milk Inc. in Belgium. When Ann stopped singing, John wanted to leave Milk Inc. too. Ultimately, however, he still accompanied the first appearances with Linda before he finally left in early 2001. Since 2006 he has accompanied Milk Inc. at their big live concerts as a guitarist in the Sportpaleis Antwerp.

Discography

Albums

The release date refers to the first sales start of the album. This does not necessarily have to match the German date. The high number of best-of albums results from the fact that they were only released in a few, individual countries and when the breakthrough in a new country often a separate best-of album was made for this region.

Studio albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)				Remarks
		UK	NL	BE F	BE W
1998	Apocalyps (e) Cow	-	-	BE F5 gold (26 weeks)BE F	-	First published: March 20, 1998 (FR, as La Vache ), May 31, 1999 (BE)
2000	Land of the Living	-	NL58 (12 weeks) NL	BE F26 (8 weeks) BE F	-	First published: November 10, 2000
2003	Closer	-	-	BE F11 (9 weeks) BE F	-	First published: October 6, 2003
2006	Supersized	-	-	BE F3 platinum (59 weeks)BE F	-	First published: September 1, 2006
2008	Forever	-	-	BE F1 platinum (35 weeks)BE F	-	First published: June 20, 2008
2011	Nomansland	-	-	BE F1 gold (33 weeks)BE F	BE W54 (1 week) BE W	First published: February 28, 2011
2013	Undercover	-	-	BE F1 gold (44 weeks)BE F	BE W63 (9 weeks) BE W	First published: June 21, 2013

Compilations

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)				Remarks
		UK	NL	BE F	BE W
2001	Double cream	-	-	BE F39 (5 weeks) BE F	-	First published: November 1, 2001
2002	Milk Inc.	UK47 (2 weeks) UK	-	-	-	First published: September 23, 2002 UK and US only
2007	The best of	-	-	BE F2 × 3 Triple platinum (35 weeks)BE F	-	First published: September 29, 2007
2011	15 - The Very Best Of	-	-	BE F4th gold (49 weeks)BE F	BE W84 (1 week) BE W	First published: October 14, 2011

Singles

The release date refers to the first launch of the single. This does not necessarily have to match the date, it is usually the vinyl version, as these were sold before the CD editions.

year	Title album	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, album , rankings, weeks, awards, notes)						Remarks
		DE	UK	NL	BE F	BE W	FR
1997	La vache / Good Enough (La Vache) Apocalyps (e) Cow	-	UK23 (3 weeks) UK	-	-	BE W24 (5 weeks) BE W	FR8 (18 weeks) FR	(in UK as Milk Incorporated, in FR as La Vache) First published: December 1996
	Free Your Mind Apocalyps Cow	-	-	-	-	-	FR19 (10 weeks) FR	(in FR as La Vache) First published: October 12, 1997
1998	Inside of Me Apocalyps (e) Cow	-	-	-	-	-	FR62 (5 weeks) FR	(in FR as La Vache) First published: February 23, 1998
	In My Eyes Apocalypse Cow	-	UK9 (8 weeks) UK	-	BE F2 gold (18 weeks)BE F	-	-	First release: not placed in UK until 2002
1999	Promise Apocalypse Cow	-	-	-	BE F3 gold (12 weeks)BE F	-	-	First published: March 29, 1999
	Oceans Apocalypse Cow	-	-	-	BE F8 (13 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 28, 1999
	Losing Love Apocalypse Cow: The Millennium Edition	-	-	-	BE F2 (16 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: November 15, 1999
2000	Walk on Water Land of the Living	DE47 (7 weeks) DE	UK10 (8 weeks) UK	NL2 gold (19 weeks)NL	BE F1 gold (20 weeks)BE F	-	-	First published: April 14, 2000 in DE only 2001, in UK only placed in 2002
	Land of the Living Land of the Living	-	UK18 (4 weeks) UK	NL23 (12 weeks) NL	BE F2 gold (16 weeks)BE F	-	-	First published: September 22nd, 2000 in UK only placed in 2003
2001	Livin 'a Lie Land of the Living	DE56 (8 weeks) DE	-	NL38 (2 weeks) NL	BE F3 (10 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: February 23, 2001
	Never Again Land of the Living	-	-	-	BE F17 (11 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 11, 2001
	Wide awake closer	-	-	-	BE F2 (13 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: November 3, 2001
2002	Sleepwalker Closer	-	-	-	BE F6 (12 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: April 24, 2002
	Breathe Without You Closer	-	-	-	BE F7 (14 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: October 28, 2002
2003	Time closer	DE92 (1 week) DE	-	-	BE F10 (10 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: May 5, 2003
	The Sun Always Shines on TV Closer	DE71 (4 weeks) DE	UK86 (2 weeks) UK	-	BE F5 (13 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: September 1, 2003
2004	I don't care closer	-	-	-	BE F3 (18 weeks) BE F	-	-	( feat.Silvy ) First published: February 9, 2004
	Whisper Supersized	-	-	-	BE F1 (20 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: September 6, 2004
2005	Blind supersized	-	-	-	BE F5 (10 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: March 2, 2005
	Go to Hell Supersized	-	-	-	BE F4 (17 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: October 7, 2005
2006	Tainted Love Supersized	-	-	-	BE F7 (15 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 9, 2006
	Run supersized	-	-	-	BE F7 (22 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: September 1, 2006
	No Angel Supersized	-	-	-	BE F10 (12 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: December 15, 2006
2007	Sunrise Forever	-	-	NL11 (9 weeks) NL	BE F3 (17 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 18, 2007
	Tonight Forever	-	-	NL22 (6 weeks) NL	BE F6 (18 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: October 19, 2007
2008	Forever Forever	-	-	-	BE F7 (15 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 9, 2008
	Race Forever	-	-	-	BE F18 (19 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: September 5, 2008
2009	Blackout Nomansland	-	-	-	BE F1 (21 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 29, 2009
2010	Storm Nomansland	-	-	-	BE F1 (13 weeks) BE F	BE W7 (5 weeks) BE W	-	First published: February 19, 2010
	Chasing the Wind Nomansland	-	-	-	BE F10 (6 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: July 9, 2010
2011	Fire Nomansland	-	-	-	BE F5 (7 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: January 31, 2011
	Shadow Nomansland	-	-	-	BE F42 (4 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 27, 2011
	I'll Be There (La vache)	-	-	-	BE F6 (6 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: September 16, 2011
2012	Miracle Undercover	-	-	-	BE F16 (6 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 13, 2012
2013	Last Night a DJ Saved My Life Undercover	-	-	-	BE F3 gold (10 weeks)BE F	BE W32 (9 weeks) BE W	-	First published: February 1, 2013
	Sweet Child o 'Mine Undercover	-	-	-	BE F5 (9 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: June 3, 2013
	Imagination undercover	-	-	-	BE F3 (4 weeks) BE F	BE W22 (2 weeks) BE W	-	First published: September 16, 2013
2014	Don't say goodbye	-	-	-	BE F7 (6 weeks) BE F	-	-	First published: October 20, 2014

More singles

• 1996: Cream
• 2000: Oceans / Promise (only in Australia)
• 2001: Don't Cry (Promo)
• 2001: Walk on Water / Oceans (only as vinyl in Germany)
• 2002: Megamix (only as vinyl)
• 2002: In My Eyes / Walk on Water (Australia only)
• 2005: Hits EP (only as vinyl in Spain)
• 2006: Hits EP Vol. 2 (only as vinyl in Spain)
• 2009: Guilty (download only in Canada)
• 2013: La Vache 2013/2014 (remix of the single La Vache (1996), also released in Spain in 2014)

Special publications

• Alone at Christmas (1999): Christmas carol for the TMF Christmas 2000 show on the TMF TV channel .
• Doe de donna (2000): Song for the Belgian radio station Radio Donna for promotional purposes . Caren Meynen, a DJane at Radio Donna, commissioned several Belgian bands to interpret the song Doe de donna she wrote . Each version was played as an intro for Meynen's morning show for exactly one week.
• Vincent (2001): The song was written within a few hours while Filip and Linda were guests on Radio Donna. In order to demonstrate to the listeners of Radio Donna how hits are made at Milk Inc., the listeners were asked to suggest a subject for the song to be written during the broadcast. The birth of a child, the birth of Vincent, was chosen as the theme . At the end of the broadcast, Vincent's mother and father's song was performed live on the phone.
• Donna 4 Life (2002): Contribution to the tenth anniversary of Radio Donna based on the song Never Again .
• Een feest voor iedereen (2002): Benefit song by Marc Paelinck for the benefit of the children's hospital “Universitair Kinderziekenhuis” in Leuven (Belgium) together with Raf Van Brussel, Peter Van Laet, TLD, Milk Inc. and Vanda Vanda (Artiesten voor Kinderen).
• When the pain comes (2010): Contribution to the charity CD “Te Gek 4 !?”. The initiative “Te Gek !?” launched by the psychiatric clinic “Psychiatrisch Ziekenhuis Sint-Annendael” in Diest aims to address the taboo subject of “mental illness” through concerts, events and lectures and to educate people about mental illnesses.

Video albums

The release date refers to the first sales launch of the DVD . This does not necessarily have to match the German date.

• Milk Inc. - The DVD (October 11, 2004): Contains music videos and acoustic versions of four songs
• Milk Inc. Supersized Live at Sportpaleis (December 15, 2006 in Belgium): Concert recording of the Supersized concert on September 30, 2006 in the Sportpaleis Antwerp (Belgium)
• Milk Inc. Live - Het beste uit Supersized 2 (December 4, 2007; supplement to P-Magazine in Belgium): 10 songs from the Supersized 2 concerts on September 28, 29 and 30, 2007 in the Sportpaleis Antwerp (Belgium)
• Milk Inc. - Forever Live at Sportpaleis (November 24, 2008 in Belgium): Live recording of the Forever concert on October 10, 2008 in the Sportpaleis Antwerp (Belgium)

Awards

year	Award	category	Title / person	country
1999	Radio Donna Award	Peper Award	In My Eyes	Belgium
1999	Move X Dance Award	Best dance single	Promise	Belgium
1999	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2000	Top Radio Top Award	Best female performer	Ann Vervoort	Belgium
2000	Radio Donna Award	Best Holidaysong of the year	Oceans	Belgium
2000	TMF Award	Best Single National	Walk on water	Belgium
2001	Hit crane	Best International Artists		Netherlands
2001	Hit crane	Best International Single	Walk on water	Netherlands
2001	TMF Award	Best Dance Act International		Netherlands
2001	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2001	TMF Award	Best Video National	Never again	Belgium
2002	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2003	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2004	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2004	TMF Award	Life Time Achievement		Belgium
2005	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2006	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2007	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2008	Music Industry Award (MIA) 2007	Best dance / electronica		Belgium
2008	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2008	TMF Award	Best National Album	Forever	Belgium
2008	TMF Award	Best Live Act National		Belgium
2009	Music Industry Award (MIA) 2008	Best dance / electronica		Belgium
2009	Telenet Kids Award	Best muziek		Belgium
2009	TMF Award	Best Dance Act National		Belgium
2009	TMF Award	Best Live Act National		Belgium
2010	Music Industry Award (MIA) 2009	Best dance / electronica		Belgium
2010	MTV Cool Brand Awards 2010	Coolest Belgian Music Group		Belgium
2012	Annes Vlaamse Muziek Awards 2011	Best dance	I'll Be There (La vache)	Belgium
2012	JIM Award 2012	Best group - nationaal		Belgium
2013	Eurodanceweb Award 2012	Favorite song	Miracle	-
2013	Annes Vlaamse Muziek Awards 2012	Best dance		Belgium
2013	Story Awards 2013	Best zanger, zangeres of muziekgroep		Belgium

swell

1. ↑ http://deredactie.be/cm/vrtnieuws/cultuur%2Ben%2Bmedia/muziek/1.2124259
2. ↑ http://www.nieuwsblad.be/cnt/dmf20170410_02827082
3. ↑ Diary of Nikkie van Lierop: Entry Summer 1997 ( Memento of the original dated August 20, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed October 17, 2007 
4. ^ DeMorgen.be: Voormalige zangeres van Milk Inc. (33) overleden - Article of April 24, 2010 . DeStandaard.be: Ex-zangeres Milk Inc. overleden - notification of April 24, 2010 . Accessed April 24, 2010
5. ↑ THE URGE: John Miles Jr. biography ( Memento of the original from May 4, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed January 19, 2008 
6. ↑ ^{a b c} Chart sources: DE UK1 UK2 NL albums NL singles BEF BEW FR
7. ↑ ^{a b c} Sources Awards: BE NL
8. ↑ UZ Leuven: Leuvense Kerstmarkt steunt Universitair Kinderziekenhuis - Uitnodiging persconferentie: Voorstelling cd "Artiesten voor Kinderen" - message from December 3, 2002 ( memento of the original from November 17, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed March 15, 2008 
9. ↑ Koen De Meester: Vierde Te GEK!? - cd voorgesteld. Best in de reeks. In: dewereldmorgen.be. DeWereldMorgen.be, October 7, 2010, accessed December 18, 2010 (Dutch). 
10. ↑ Proxis.be: Forever Live At Sportpaleis - Milk Inc.  ( Page no longer available , search in web archives )  Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed October 29, 2008  
11. ↑ The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive: Newsarchive June 29 - July 4, 1999 . Accessed October 19, 2007
12. ↑ The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive: Newsarchive October 19-28, 1999 . Accessed October 19, 2007
13. ↑ The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive: Newsarchive June 20-25, 2000 . Accessed October 19, 2007
14. ↑ The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive: Newsarchive October 25 - November 1, 2000 . Accessed October 19, 2007
15. ↑ The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive: Newsarchive April 5-11, 2001 . Accessed October 19, 2007
16. ↑ Nieuwsblad.be: En de winnaars zijn - notification of October 2, 2005 . Accessed November 16, 2007
17. ^ Nieuwsblad.be: Dit zijn de winnaars 2006 - notification of October 15, 2006 . Accessed November 16, 2007
18. ↑ Telenet TMF Awards: Winners 2007 . Accessed: October 19, 2007. Nieuwsblad.be: Overzicht winnaars TMF awards - notification of October 14, 2007 . Accessed March 30, 2008
19. ↑ Music Industry Awards 2007: De winnaars zijn bekend! ( Memento of the original from February 3, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed: February 8, 2008. indymedia.be: MIA AWARDS 2007: MILOW NAAR HUIS MET 3 MIA S - article from January 31, 2008 . Accessed March 30, 2008 
20. ↑ ^{a b c} TMF Awards 2008: Winners 2008 . Accessed October 13, 2008. Nieuwsblad.be: De Awards! - News from October 12, 2008 . Accessed October 13, 2008
21. ↑ Music Industry Awards 2008: Nieuws - MIA's 2008: de winnaars ( Memento of the original from February 10, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed: February 7, 2009. DeMorgen.be: Vijf MIA's voor Milow - article from February 6, 2009 . Accessed February 7, 2009 
22. ↑ Telenet Events: Louislouise en Milk Inc winnaars van Kids Awards - message of April 13, 2009 ( Memento of the original of April 29, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed: April 24, 2009. De Standaard Online: Louislouise en Milk Inc. winnaars van Telenet Kids Awards - notification of April 13th . Accessed April 24, 2009 
23. ↑ ^{a b} TMF Awards 2009: En de winnaars zijn ... . Accessed: October 11, 2009. Nieuwsblad.be: De TMF-winnaars - notification of October 10, 2009 . Accessed October 11, 2009
24. ↑ Music Industry Awards 2009: Nieuws - MIA's 2009: de winnaars ( Memento of the original from March 15, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed: January 9, 2010. DeStandaard.be: MIA's 2009: het lijstje met de winnaars - Article of January 8, 2010 . Accessed January 9, 2010 
25. ↑ Official Milk Inc. Website: Nieuws - MTV Cool Brand Awards 2010 . Accessed January 16, 2013.
26. ↑ Showbizzsite.be: Christoff grote winnaar first Annes Vlaamse Muziek Awards . Accessed January 16, 2013
27. ↑ JIM.be: De JIMMIES 2012 - de winnaars . Accessed March 18, 2012
28. ↑ Eurodanceweb Award: AWARD 2012 ( Memento of the original from October 27, 2012 on WebCite ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. . Accessed February 9, 2013 
29. ↑ Showbizzsite.be: De Romeo's en 3M8S grote winnaars van de Anne Awards 2012 . Accessed January 16, 2013
30. ^ Nieuwsblad.be: Astrid Bryan, Jeroen Meus and Angelina Jolie krijgen Story Awards . Accessed December 1, 2013

Web links

• Official website of the group (English / Dutch)
• DanceVibes.be - detailed biography until 2008 (English)
• The Belgian Rock & Pop Archive - detailed biography until 2001
• Milk Inc. at Discogs (English)
• Homepage of the drummer Michael Schack (English)
• Homepage of the ex-singer Nikkie van Lierop (English)
• Homepage of the ex-singer Sofie Winters (English)