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Jeangu Macrooy | |
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| Background information | |
| Born | (1993-11-06)6 November 1993 (age 32) Paramaribo, Suriname |
| Genres | Pop,soul,alternative |
| Occupation(s) | Musician, singer, composer, actor |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Labels | Unexpected Records |
| Website | www |
Jeangu Macrooy (Dutch pronunciation:[ʑɑ̃ːˈɡymaːˈkroːi]; born 6 November 1993) is aSurinamese-Dutchsinger-songwriter andactor. He was born inParamaribo and has been living in theNetherlands since 2014. Macrooy's music is described as modernsoul. His audience is mainly based in the Netherlands, Suriname, and increasingly inBelgium, France and Germany. He was due to represent host nation the Netherlands in theEurovision Song Contest 2020 inRotterdam with the song "Grow", but the contest was cancelled because of theCOVID-19 pandemic. Instead, he represented the country in the2021 contest with "Birth of a New Age".[1]
In 2011, together with his twin brotherXillan, 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 theArtEZ Conservatory inEnschede.[3]
During a performance at the conservatory, Macrooy met music producerPerquisite and signed with his record labelUnexpected Records shortly after in December 2015.[4] Macrooy's debut EPBrave Enough, produced by Perquisite, appeared in April 2016, and his first single "Gold" was used in an advertisement forHBO.[5] A year later, in April 2017, Macrooy released his first solo album,High on You which was co-written and produced by Perquisite. The album peaked at number 69 on theDutch Albums Chart.
Both releases were followed byclub tours in the Netherlands and performances as asupporting act at concerts abroad. He was the opening act forCurtis Harding andAyo in Germany, and forTrombone Shorty in Belgium, France and Germany. He has also performed at some of the major music festivals of the Netherlands, including theNorth Sea Jazz Festival andLowlands. 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 thetheme song of the Dutch drama filmOpen Seas, which premiered in 2018.
Macrooy's second album, titledHorizon, which was also produced by Perquisite, 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 andBerlin.[9] He also played at the internationally renownedReeperbahn Festival in Hamburg.[10]
His song "High on You" has gained great success in Suriname topping theNationale Top 40 Suriname.[11]
On 10 January 2020 it was announced that Macrooy would represent the Netherlands in theEurovision Song Contest 2020 inRotterdam.[12] After the show's cancellation due to theCOVID-19 pandemic, it was announced that he would represent the country once again in theEurovision Song Contest 2021.[1] Jeangu is the third Dutch Eurovision act with Surinamese origins, asHumphrey Campbell (Eurovision Song Contest 1992) andRuth 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 inSranan 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, all of which were awarded by the juries while he received none from the televote.
On 11 November 2022 Macrooy released his third studio album, "Summer Moon", which he made together with producerBud Kolk. He drew the album artwork of the album himself, just like he did with the covers of 'Brave Enough' and 'High On You'.[14][15] In terms of sound, Jeangu partly returned to the soulful sound of his debut album, butSummer Moon also has electronic and disco influences. The album was nominated for theEdison Pop Awards in the categoryBest Soul/R&B/Funk album. In March 2023, Jeangu releasedSpace. The single was namedTopSong by NPO Radio 2, the fourth in his career to date. Later that year he and his band launched theSummer Moon tour.
At the end of 2023, it was announced that Jeangu will play the role of Jesus in the rock musicalJesus Christ Superstar by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, directed by Ivo van Hove. The theater spectacle ran from January 2024 to November 2024 and received rave 5-star reviews in all national newspapers. Jeangu was also nominated forBest Performance by a Lead Actor in a Major Musical at the 2024Musical Awards.
From June 29, 2025, Jeangu can be seen in the role of Orpheus in the musical 'Hadestown'. The Broadway musical will be on show all summer at the Royal Theater Carré in Amsterdam.[16]
Jeangu’s fourth studio album "Young, Awkward & Lonely", produced by Jasper Zuidervaart (Chef’Special), is scheduled for release in the fall of 2025; the first four singles have already been released and have been positively received.
Macrooy has been a regular guest on the Dutch talkshowDe Wereld Draait Door (DWDD). Besides performing his own music, he has paid tributes to other artists includingStevie Wonder,George Michael, and theBlue Diamonds. He also performedBob 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, alongside Ruben Hein, several songs byPaul Simon andElton John, who had announced their farewell tours earlier in 2018.
On 28 March 2018, Macrooy was part of the Dutch national TV productionThe Passion, in which he took on the role ofJudas, alongsideTommie Christiaan [nl] (Jesus),Brainpower (Saint Peter),Glennis Grace (Mary), andArjan Ederveen (Pontius Pilate).[17] The broadcast, which took place inAmsterdam-Zuidoost that year, attracted 3.5 million viewers.
On 30 December 2021, Macrooy was a guest onNPO'sDe Nationale 2021 Test along withLisa Loeb,Edson da Graça [nl],Lale Gül,Lucille Werner,Jetze Plat, andMarcel van Roosmalen [nl]. 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 showEven tot hier [nl]. He sung a parody on his song “Birth Of A New Age”. The parody was aboutOlga Commandeur leaving television after 23 years.
In April 2023, he also appeared in an episode of the television game showAlles is Muziek.
Macrooy has a sister and a twin brother, Xillan Macrooy, who is also a singer and used to be one of the backing vocalists in Jeangu Macrooy's live band. The two have also collaborated on the songs "Crazy Kids" from Jeangu Macrooy's debut album 'High On You' and "Second Hand Lover" from Macrooy's sophomore albumHorizon.[18]
Jeangu has spoken about the importance of being anopenly gay role model for young Surinamese people, a country where queerness is often still considered a taboo subject.[19]
| Title | Details | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL [20] | |||||||||||||||||||
| High on You |
| 69 | |||||||||||||||||
| Horizon |
| — | |||||||||||||||||
| Summer Moon |
| — | |||||||||||||||||
| "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory. | |||||||||||||||||||
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Live! |
|
| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Brave Enough |
|
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SUR [22] | NL Single Top 100 | NL Dutch Top 40 | BEL (FL) | LIT [23] | |||
| "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 | —[a] | — | |
| "Birth of a New Age" | 2021 | — | 30 | 37 | 90 | 94 | |
| "A Little Greener" | — | — | — | — | — | Summer Moon | |
| "Worship" | 2022 | — | — | — | — | — | Summer Moon |
| "Admit It" | — | — | — | — | — | Summer Moon | |
| "Paris" | — | — | — | — | — | Summer Moon | |
| "Space" | 2023 | 32 | — | — | — | — | Summer Moon |
| "Young, Awkward & Lonely" | 2024 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| "Happier" | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| "I Found Someone"[24] | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Everybody Needs Somebody" | 2025 | - | - | - | - | - | |
| "—" 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 | Nominated |
| 2018 | Best Album (High On You) | Nominated | |
| 2024 | Edison Awards | Best Soul/R&B/Funk Album (Summer Moon) | Nominated |
| 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 |
| International | |
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| Artists | |
