Milk Inc.

Milk Inc. (also known as Milk Incorporated) was a Eurodance group from Belgium.

History

When the group started in 1997 their singer was Nikkie Van Lierop (aka Nikki Mono aka Jade4U, singer of Lords of Acid). The first single was called La Vache and was very successful all over Europe, especially in France and the UK. Since its inception, they have released more than twenty singles and ten albums, and have toured extensively in Europe.

Milk Inc. started as a studio project of three young Belgian producers: Regi Penxten, Filip Vandueren and Ivo Donckers. The three had already carved a niche for themselves in the Belgian house scene, working for K-lab (Dance Opera), Regg & Arkin, Karnak-X, some of the "Illusion" (a club where Regi is the resident DJ) and remixes for different dance groups.

Their first release under the name Milk Inc. was La Vache and it featured a vocal remix by Praga Khan and that one got off the ground. It was sung by Nikkie Van Lierop (aka Nikki Mono aka Jade4U). The song became a hit in France, selling over 300,000 copies (that's gold for a single) and appearing on numerous compilations. After a while Regi needed another vocalist, since Nikkie was busy with Praga Khan when he became famous in the United States.

He found Sofie Winters (singer and actress), who was present only on the second single, Free your mind, which was not as successful.

For the third single, Inside of me, Ann Vervoort was the singer. Vervoort was a graphic designer and dancer for Pat Krimson (of 2 Fabiola), and with whom she would later go to Ibiza.

Inside of me, released in February 1998, was also not a hit on the charts, but did quite well in clubs. On a tour of South Africa in March of that same year, they achieved a gold record for La Vache.

The next single, In my eyes, broke records in Belgium. It was a new style of music, a style that gave them a lot of commercial success. Those changes were introduced partly by John Miles Jr. who joined the group and began writing songs for guitar, and partly by Ann Vervoort's melodic vocals. They sold 40,000 copies and won the Donna Award.

Several singles with the same style and vocals followed with success (Promise, Oceans and Losing Love). Apocalypse Cow, her first album, was released in May 1999 and was a compilation of old singles and several new ones. Walk on water became a huge hit in Belgium: number one on the singles charts, but also number one in the Netherlands the following year. This album became the best-selling dance album in Belgium in 1999.

Ann Vervoort, until then the face of the group on stage, announced her departure from Milk Inc. on September 15, 2000. She had decided to go to Ibiza to create the Benimusa label with her husband Patrick Claesen (Pat Krimson, creator of Never or 2 Fabiola). Linda Mertens, who was working as a hairdresser at the time, although she wanted to be an artist, went to the Illusion nightclub one night, and not yet knowing that Regi was looking for a new voice for the group, she offered to collaborate on the project by giving him her phone number. After two weeks she was summoned for the first voice test, she was asked to dance too, and in this way she became the new singer and face of the group.

It has been confirmed that Ann was not singing live and that the actual singer was Karine Boelaerts (also studio singer for 2 Fabiola, Maurizzio and Chumi DJ). Ann could sing, but for some parts her voice wasn't good enough.

In September 2000, the group released the first single, Land of the living, featuring Linda on vocals. A month later Milk Inc. received the award for best dance performance from the TMF television network. In November they released their second album, Land of the living. All the songs were first written on guitar and then converted to dance, so the song structure is basically classic pop.

On the night of March 23-24, 2010, the group's lead vocalist, Ann Vervoort, is found dead.

In April 2017, the daughter of Linda Mertens, who was only 3 years old, died of cancer. Since then Milk Inc. has not returned to record in the studio and / or perform live presentations. Regi has continued composing and collaborating with other artists and solo. Linda has not returned to music since. In some interviews Regi stated that she wants to give Linda all the time she needs to recover, and she doesn't want to push her. The rumors of the fans in different pages and forums, such as some specialized journalists, suggest that Milk Inc. will not make music or perform live again; so it is said that the group is dissolved. In 2020 at the Love The Tuenti's Festival concert in Madrid, she returns under the name of Regi from Milk Inc., performing only Regi Penxten under the name of the famous dance group Milk Inc.

Members

• Linda Mertens.
• Regi Penxten (technical and producer).
• Filip Vandueren (teacher and producer).

Discography

Albums

• Apocalypse Cow (La Vache) (France) (1998).
• Apocalypse Cow (1999).
• Apocalypse Cow Spain.
• Apocalypse Cow Millennium Edition (1999).
• Land Of The Living (2000).
• Double Cream (Europe) (2001).
• Double Cream (Poland).
• Double Cream (Canada).
• Double Cream (Singapore) (2001).
• Milk Inc. (UK) (2002).
• Milk Inc. (US Import) (2002).
• Closer (2003).
• Best Of Milk Inc. Australia (2004).
• Closer USA (2005).
• Milk Inc. Essential (2005).
• Supersized (2006).
• Supersized XL (2006).
• Best of (2007).
• Forever (2008).
• Nomansland (2011).
• Undercover (2013).

Simple

(*) Single is charting

DVD

Linda Mertens, singer of Milk Inc.

Milk Inc. - The DVD (11 October 2004)

Acoustic Session:

01: Oceans

02: Don't Cry

03: Walk On Water

04: I Don't Care

05: Maybe

Musical videos:

01: Whisper

02: I Don't Care

03: The Sun Always Shines On TV

04: Time

05: Breathe Without You

06: Sleepwalker

07: Wide Awake

08: Never Again

09: Livin' A Lie

10: Land Of The Living (UK Version)

11: Land Of The Living

12: Walk On Water (UK Version)

13: Walk On Water (German Version)

14: Oceans

15: In My Eyes (UK Version)

16: Inside Of Me

17: Free Your Mind

18: La Vache

Milk Inc.-Supersized Live DVD (8 December 2006)

01: La Vache

02: Run

03: Sleepwalker

04: Blind

05: No Angel

06: I Don't Care (Feat. Silvy)

07: No Music

08: Lonely

09: In My Eyes

10: Whisper

11: Saxy-Motion

12: Time

13: Land Of The Living

14: Tainted Love

15: Never Again

16: Oceans (Unplugged)

17: Walk On Water (Unplugged - Reprise)

18: The Sun Always Shines On TV

19: Breathe Without You

20: Go To Hell

Bonus: Heaven & Photo Gallery

Milk Inc Supersized 2 "Het best uit Supersized 2"

1: Breath without you

2: Tonight

3: Lonely

4: sleepwalker

5: Girl on drums / La Vache VS Played-A-Live

6: Oceans (acoustic)

7: Sunrise (acoustic + reprise)

8: Never again

9: In my eyes

10: Walk on water (acoustic + reprise)