By Femke Legué

The Netherlands

Jeangu Macrooy

Birth of A New Age

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Jeangu Macrooy is a singer born in Paramaribo, 1993.
He started singing from a young age with his twin brother Xillan.
In 2014 Jeangu moved to The Netherlands.
He made his debut in 2016 with his album Brave Enough, and he started to gain traction.
He got nominated for a Edison Pop Award, was a guest on "De Wereld draait door" and did numerous other projects.
He published two more albums "High on you" 2017 and "Horizon" 2019, and became even more popular.
He was an artist at Lowlands and North Sea Jazz, and was an actor in "The Passion" where he played the character of Judas.
In 2020 Macrooy was chosen to be the singer representing the country with his song "Grow", but because of COVID he will return this year with his song "Birth of a new age"

Birth of A New Age

Skin as rich as the starlit night
Your rhythm is rebellion, your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
Deep currents running in the rivers of your eyes
Your rhythm is rebellion, your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
They spat on your crown and they poisoned your ground
Your rhythm is rebellion, your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
They burned your heroes at the stake
But your voice will echo all their names
This ain't the end, no
It's the birth of a new age
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko, broko mi
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko, broko mi (oh-oh)
Soul blazin' like a hurricane
Your rhythm is rebellion (mmm-mhm), your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
Spirit roaring wild like untamed flames
Your rhythm is rebellion (oh yeah), your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
They buried your gods, they imprisoned your thoughts
Your rhythm is rebellion, your rhythm is rebellion (oh-oh)
They tried to drain you of your faith
But you are the rage that melts the chains
This ain't the end, no
It's the birth of a new age
We are the fruit, adorning the legacy
Of every forgotten revolutionary
Born in resilience, proud like a lion
We are the birth of a new age
Yu no man broko mi (yeah)
Yu no man broko mi (mm-hmm)
Yu no man broko, broko mi (mi na afu sensi)
Yu no man broko mi (yu no man)
Yu no man broko mi (yu no man)
Yu no man broko, broko mi (mi na afu sensi)
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko, broko mi (mi na afu sensi)
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko mi
Yu no man broko, broko mi (mi na afu sensi)

"Birth of a new age" is the first eurovision song that has the Sranantongo language sung in it.
Sranantongo is a creole language that started as the language in which slave owners and enslaved people spoke to each other.
The song is heavily inspired by his Surinamese heritage, and the Surinamese history.
The song is also about your "rhythm", finding yourself and staying true to yourself.
In the way he speaks about people's "rhythm" he speaks about difficulties we faced especially in 2020.
He refers in interviews to anxieties about catching COVID, or losing your job and loneliness.
But also talks about social issues and questions, such as "does the color of my skin change peoples perception about me?" or "does my gender or sexuality change peoples perception about me?".
"Birth of a new age" is a song that stands for a new beginning after a hard year in a pandemic.

Meaning of the song

References in the song lyrics

"Birth of a new age" - is also the titel of a speech of Dr. Martin Luther King.

"Your rhythm is rebellion" - referes to finding yorself and doing what you want to do.

"You no man broko mi" - is sung in Sranantongo and means: You can't break me.
it is a referense to the Surinamese saying: "Mi na afu sensi, no
wan man e broko mi" which means: I am half a cent, no one can
break me.
The background singers also sing "mi na afu sensi".

"This ain’t the end, it’s the birth of a new age" - refers to the world after the
pandemic and the start of something
new.

Music video

The video clip was recorded in the Rijksmuseum, the Tropenmuseum and in the Koepelkerk in Amsterdam.
In an interview with the producers of the music video, Smarthouse, they tell about the meaning behind the video.

It focusses on an Afro-Caribbean spiritual perspective.
In the video Jeangu is "baptized" and visualizes a new age.