Singer songwriter Jeangu Macrooy has placed a homage to his Surinamese roots at the centre of the Dutch entry for this year’s Eurovision Song Festival, which is being hosted in Rotterdam.

Birth of a New Age tells a story of resilience and the beginning of a new era, and was written and produced by Macrooy and longtime collaborator Perquisite.

Part of the song is sung in Sranan Tongo, one of the languages of his birthplace Suriname and, says Macrooy, was inspired by an old Surinamese ‘odo’ or saying: ‘Mi Na Afu Sensi, No Wan Man E Broko Mi’ which translates as ‘I’m half a cent, you can’t break me’.

‘The song is an ode to everyone who stands up for themselves and dares to celebrate the power of their authenticity,’ Jeangu told television presenter Cornald Maas.

The Netherlands has won Eurovision five times, with Duncan Laurence taking the title in 2019. The contest was postponed last year due to coronavirus.

This year the organisers have come up with four possible scenarios to allow the event to go ahead in May.

Sietse Bakker, executive producer for the Dutch broadcasting service NOS, said in January he wanted to put on ‘the best possible Eurovision Song Contest under the circumstances.’ ‘Our primary goal is to get the 41 artists to Rotterdam, to all perform on the same stage, and to welcome journalists to cover the contest,’ he said.