Junior Eurovision 2021 Review -The Netherlands: Ayana Mata Sugu Aō Ne

The Artist 
Ayana is 14 years old, and won the Dutch National Final Junior Songfestival to earn her ticket to Paris. She is a Dutch singer of Japanese and British descent.

She loves to sing, dance, do crafts and play piano, and she was a member of four editions of the children’s choir Kinderen voor Kinderen.

The Song
Mata Sugu Aō Ne, which roughly translates from Japanese to When I See You Again, is a ballad about missing someone and waiting until you can see them again - pretty topical since we have been kept away from people during the pandemic. It is in three languages: Dutch, Japanese, and English. 

The song was written by Ferry Lagendijk (Dutch musician and keyboardist). 

You can find the song on our YouTube and Spotify playlists. 

The Netherlands at JESC 

2021 will be the 19th appearance for The Netherlands and they have won once with Ralf Mackenbach’s Click Clack in 2009. Since their debut in 2003, they have never missed a contest.

OGAE Australia JESC Team scores and thoughts: 

Ally: 6/10 ✭✭✭✭✭✭✩✩✩✩

This is such a beautiful song and so emotional! It’s not my kind of song as I prefer more boppy kind of songs, but if the Dutch stage this right this could do really well. Mark my word.

Blake: 5/10 ✭✭✭✭✭✩✩✩✩✩

While it might not be my favourite it's been stuck in my head for days. Ayana's vocals are so calm and soothing and the message is beautiful plus inclusion of Japanese is awesome! 


Danie: 7/10 ✭✭✭✭✭✭✭✩✩✩

I’m a sucker for a good Dutch ballad and this is great. It’s very easy to listen to and hits you the feels in all the right ways. Hoping for some really lovely staging for this too. Ganbatte kudasai, Ayana san!


Kurtis: 8/10 ✭✭✭✭✭✭✭✭✩✩

I have a big soft spot for またすぐ会おうね。’Let’s meet again soon’ is an uplifting and emotional pop-ballad where Ayana explores her identity of being Dutch-Japanese. The music video conveys Ayana’s emotional struggle of being apart from those she cares about. 

Raquel: 7/10 ✭✭✭✭✭✭✭✩✩✩

It’s nice! Quite calm and the video is aesthetically pleasing! I hope she does well although its not my style, I like the message about her struggle from being apart from the ones she cares about.

Average Score: 6.6

The JESC Team score does not reflect the views of all OGAE Australia members.

Previous
Previous

Junior Eurovision 2021 Review - France: Enzo Tic Tac

Next
Next

Junior Eurovision 2021 Review - North Macedonia: Dajte Muzika Green Forces