| Jeangu Macrooy | |
| Background: | solo_singer |
| Birth Date: | 6 November 1993 |
| Birth Place: | Paramaribo, Suriname |
| Genre: | Pop, soul, alternative |
| Occupation: | Musician, singer, composer |
| Years Active: | 2011–present |
| Label: | Unexpected Records |
Jeangu Macrooy (in Dutch; Flemish pronounced as /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]
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]
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 club tours in the Netherlands and performances as a supporting act at concerts abroad. He was the opening act for Curtis Harding and 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]
See main article: Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 and Netherlands in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021. 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. 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]
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.
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 (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.
On 30 December 2021, Macrooy was a guest on NPO's De Nationale 2021 Test along with Lisa Loeb,, Lale Gül, Lucille Werner, Jetze Plat, and . Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the show was filmed with a virtual audience.
On 29 April 2023, Macrooy performed a song in the television show . 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.
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]
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL [19] | ||||||||||||||||||||
| High on You |
| 69 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Horizon |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| Summer Moon |
| — | ||||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| +List of singles as lead artist, with selected chart positions and certifications, showing year released and album name | Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUR [21] | NL Single Top 100 | NL Dutch Top 40 | BEL (FL) | LIT [22] | ||||
| "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" | 1 | — | — | — | ||||
| "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 | — | — | rowspan="8" | |
| "Birth of a New Age" | 2021 | — | 30 | 37 | 90 | 94 | ||
| "A Little Greener" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Worship" | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Admit It" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Paris" | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Space" | 2023 | 32 | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Young, Awkward & Lonely" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. "*" denotes the chart did not exist at that time. | ||||||||
| Year | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Edison Awards | Best Newcomer | data-sort-value=#99FF99 |
| 2018 | Best Album (High On You) | data-sort-value=#99FF99 | |