Jeangu Macrooy

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Jeangu Macrooy
Background information
Born (1993-11-06) 6 November 1993 (age 30)
Paramaribo, Suriname
GenresPop, soul, alternative
Occupation(s)Musician, singer, composer
Years active2011–present
LabelsUnexpected Records
Websitewww.jeangumacrooy.com

Jeangu Macrooy (Dutch pronunciation: [ʒɑ̃ːˈɡy maːˈkroːi]; born 6 November 1993) is a Surinamese singer-songwriter. He was born in Paramaribo and has been living in the Netherlands in the eastern city Enschede in the region Twente since 2014. Macrooy's music is described as modern soul. His audience is in the Netherlands, Suriname, and increasingly in Belgium, France and Germany. He was due to represent host nation the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam with the song "Grow", but the contest was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, he represented the country in the 2021 contest with "Birth of a New Age".[1]

Career

Early career

In 2011, together with his twin brother Xillan, Macrooy formed the band Between Towers. Their first and only album, Stars on My Radio came out in 2013.[2] After having studied at the Conservatory of Suriname in Paramaribo for two years, he moved to the Netherlands in 2014 to study songwriting at the ArtEZ Conservatory in Enschede.[3]

2015–2019: Album releases and tours

During a performance at the conservatory, Macrooy met music producer Perquisite and signed with his record label Unexpected Records shortly after in December 2015.[4] Macrooy's debut EP Brave Enough appeared in April 2016, and his first single "Gold" was used in an advertisement for HBO.[5] A year later, in April 2017, Macrooy released his first solo album, High on You. The album peaked at number 69 on the Dutch Albums Chart.

Both releases were followed by

Ayo in Germany, and for Trombone Shorty in Belgium, France and Germany. He has also performed at some of the major music festivals of the Netherlands, including the North Sea Jazz Festival and Lowlands. In December 2017, Macrooy returned to Suriname for his first concert with his band in Paramaribo.[6] His single "Dance with Me" was used as the theme song of the Dutch drama film Open Seas
, which premiered in 2018.

Macrooy's second album, titled Horizon was released in February 2019.[7][8] In the summer of 2019, he went on his first own headliner tour to three major cities in Germany: Cologne, Hamburg and Berlin.[9] He also played at the internationally renowned Reeperbahn Festival in Hamburg.[10]

His song "High on You" has gained great success in Suriname topping the Nationale Top 40 Suriname.[11]

2020–present: Eurovision Song Contest and "Summer Moon"

On 10 January 2020 it was announced that Macrooy would represent the Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam.[12] After the show's cancellation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was announced that he would represent the country once again in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021.[1] Jeangu is the third Dutch Eurovision act with Surinamese origins, as Humphrey Campbell (Eurovision Song Contest 1992) and Ruth Jacott (Eurovision Song Contest 1993) were also both born in Suriname before moving to the Netherlands.

On 4 March 2021 Macrooy's entry, entitled "Birth of a New Age", was released. The song was the first ever Eurovision entry to feature lyrics in Sranan Tongo.[13] As Netherlands was the host country of the 2021 contest, Jeangu was automatically qualified for the final, where he placed 23rd out of 26 participants, receiving 11 points.

On 11 November 2022 Macrooy released his third studio album, "Summer Moon". He drew the album artwork of the album himself.[14][15]

Television appearances

De Wereld Draait Door

Macrooy talking about the documentary George Michael: Freedom on De Wereld Draait Door

Macrooy has been a regular guest on the Dutch talkshow De Wereld Draait Door (DWDD). Besides performing his own music, he has paid tributes to other artists including Stevie Wonder, George Michael, and the Blue Diamonds. He also performed Bob Dylan's "The Times They Are a-Changin'" in a special retrospective broadcast of the show. Throughout the show's 2018–2019 season, Macrooy sang several songs by Paul Simon and Elton John, who had announced their farewell tours earlier in 2018.

The Passion

On 28 March 2018, Macrooy was part of the Dutch national TV production The Passion, in which he took on the role of Judas, alongside Tommie Christiaan [nl] (Jesus), Brainpower (Saint Peter), Glennis Grace (Mary), and Arjan Ederveen (Pontius Pilate).[16] The broadcast, which took place in Amsterdam-Zuidoost that year, attracted 3.5 million viewers.

De Nationale 2021 Test

On 30 December 2021, Macrooy was a guest on NPO's De Nationale 2021 Test along with Lisa Loeb, Edson da Graça [nl], Lale Gül, Lucille Werner, Jetze Plat, and Marcel van Roosmalen [nl]. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show was filmed with a virtual audience.

Even tot hier

On 29 April 2023, Macrooy performed a song in the television show Even tot hier [nl]. He sung a parody on his song “Birth Of A New Age”. The parody was about Olga Commandeur leaving television after 23 years.

In April 2023, he also appeared in an episode of the television game show Alles is Muziek.

Personal life

Macrooy has a sister and a twin brother, Xillan Macrooy, who is also a singer and one of the backing vocalists in Jeangu Macrooy's band. The two have also collaborated on the song "Second Hand Lover" from Macrooy's album Horizon.[17]

Jeangu has spoken about the importance of being an

openly gay role model for young Surinamese people, a country where gay culture is often considered a taboo subject.[18]

Discography

Studio albums

Title Details Peak chart positions
NL
[19]
High on You 69
Horizon
  • Released: 8 February 2019
  • Label: Unexpected Records
  • Formats: Digital download, CD
Summer Moon
  • Released: 11 November 2022
  • Label: Unexpected Records
  • Formats: Digital Download, CD, Cassette[20]
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Live albums

Title Details
Live!
  • Released: 6 November 2019
  • Label: Unexpected Records
  • Formats: Digital download, CD

Extended plays

Title Details
Brave Enough
  • Released: 7 April 2016
  • Label: Unexpected Records
  • Formats: Digital download, CD

Other albums

  • Stars on My Radio (2013) (album credited to Between Towers)

Singles

Title Year Peak chart positions Album
NL
Single
Top 100
NL
Dutch
Top 40
BEL (FL) LIT
"Gold" 2016 Brave Enough
"To Love Is to Hurt"
"Brave Enough"
"Step Into the Water" 2017 High On You
"Crazy Kids"
(featuring Xillan)
"High On You"
"Tell Me Father"
"How Much I Love You" 2018 Horizon
"Dance with Me"
"Shake Up This Place" 2019
"Second Hand Lover"
"Grow" 2020 48 29 [a] Non-album singles
"Birth of a New Age" 2021 30 37 90 94
"A Little Greener"
"Worship" 2022
"Admit It"
"Paris"
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Result
2017 Edison Awards Best Newcomer Nominated
2018 Best Album (High On You) Nominated

Notes

  1. ^ "Grow" was a 'tip' in the Ultratip Bubbling Under.

References

  1. ^ a b Herbert, Emily (March 18, 2020). "The Netherlands: Jeangu Macrooy Will Represent The Netherlands at Eurovision 2021". Eurovoix. Archived from the original on March 18, 2020. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  2. ^ "Log In or Sign Up to View". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
  3. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy — Unexpected Records". unexpected-records.com. Archived from the original on January 11, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  4. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
  5. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy in HBO commercial on Ziggo". The Missing Sync. January 18, 2017. Archived from the original on December 1, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
  6. ^ "Suriname I'm coming home! – Jeangu Macrooy". Archived from the original on March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  7. ^ "Horizon – Jeangu Macrooy – Muziekweb". Archived from the original on March 24, 2019. Retrieved March 24, 2019 – via www.muziekweb.nl.
  8. ^ "Second album 'Horizon' is OUT NOW! – Jeangu Macrooy". Archived from the original on October 1, 2020. Retrieved March 8, 2020.
  9. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy on tour through Germany — Unexpected Records". unexpected-records.com. Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  10. ^ "Reeperbahn Festival: Noch mehr Acts, die ihr beim "Dutch Impact" entdecken könnt | >>FastForward Magazine". Archived from the original on December 26, 2019. Retrieved December 26, 2019.
  11. ^ "Top 40 Suriname". www.facebook.com. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
  12. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy vertegenwoordigt Nederland op het Eurovisie Songfestival 2020". songfestival.nl (in Dutch). January 10, 2020. Archived from the original on January 10, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
  13. ^ "Netherlands: Jeangu Macrooy releases "Birth of A New Age" for Eurovision 2021". Eurovisionworld. 2021-03-04. Retrieved 2021-03-25.
  14. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy over nieuw album 'Summer Moon': 'Heel persoonlijk'". www.linda.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  15. ^ Macrooy, Jeangu (2022-11-11). "My new album Summer Moon is out now! – Jeangu Macrooy". Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  16. ^ "Fans onthullen castleden The Passion 2018". The Passion (in Dutch). Archived from the original on January 13, 2020. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  17. ^ Macrooy, Jeangu (2022-11-11). "My new album Summer Moon is out now! – Jeangu Macrooy". Retrieved 2024-03-02.
  18. ^ "Jeangu Macrooy confirmed as The Netherlands' Eurovision 2020 singer". wiwibloggs. 2020-01-10. Archived from the original on March 29, 2020. Retrieved 2021-01-15.
  19. ^ "Discografie Jeangu Macrooy". dutchcharts.nl. Archived from the original on August 29, 2020. Retrieved January 10, 2020.
  20. ^ Macrooy, Jeangu (2022-11-01). "Pre-order my new album 'Summer Moon' on CD or cassette! – Jeangu Macrooy". Retrieved 2024-03-02.

External links

Awards and achievements
Preceded by Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
2020 (cancelled)
Succeeded by
Himself
with "Birth of a New Age"
Preceded by
Himself
with "Grow"
Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest
2021
Succeeded by