Text: Kim Veerabuthroo Nordberg | Photo: Viktor Gårdsäter
Half a million Swedish people wanted Loreen to represent them in Baku. One of them was Novell’s Kim Veerabuthroo Nordberg. He met Loreen in a conversation about mysticism, Sweden and defending yourself with your fists.
Loreen was pretty unreservedly loved when we met in mid May 2012. Two record company employers accompany Loreen when she arrived to the interview. She quickly changed to a new black dress from Nakkna for the photoshoot. She wears a waste short leather jacket over the dress.
She sings while she photographs.
“There’s a rooom full of niggaaas.”
– Have you heard The Weeknd? She asks. So damn good!
She works alone on her debut album, which according to plan will be released September 5 but will probably be delayed. There is a lot of things happening now.
– The album is very dramatic, like everything I do. We have done a completely fantastic song named “Will I see you next Autumn?” (Requiem Solution) It’s… dark. Crazy heavy beats.
Loreen had a huge mohikan hairstyle when she competed in Idol, she went under the name Lorén. She lost the competition early because of lacking support from the audience but came back as the jury’s free card. She delivered R&B week after week, with artists like Stevie Wonder, Shirley Bassey and Michael Jackson. The almost ridiculous agreed jury eyes glistered of excitement every Friday. But the audience was not impressed and Loreen went home right before the final. Seven years later she won Melodifestivalen.
What did she do during that time?
A whole lot of things. Went to New York, lived in Brooklyn… and met her mentor, the song writer Kenisha Pratt, who taught her to see music through new eyes. She also lived short periods in Florida and France, but always had Stockholm as a base.
She worked with TV, was producer, directed pilots and did the voice as Smurfette in the movie “Smurfarna“. She worked at a café, and as a host on TV400.
She competed in Melodifestivalen last year with the song “My Heart Is Refusing Me”, but did not win. This year she returns with the song “Euphoria”, barefoot, and with a fringe that covers her eyes. It went excellent!
Euphoria and it’s performance have become something more that just the winning song. It has also become a culture thing. A storm more or less of Youtube-celebration showing teenager doing their own covers on Euphoria have appeared. Parents upload cute videos of their stumbling kids trying to do the Euphoria-dance.
This is a rehabilitation from Loreen’s school days, where she was bullied. She grew up on the country side in sparsely populated Gryta outside Västerås. A wealthy area where she soon release that she was different from the other kids.
– I wasn’t in the same phase as ever other kid. I grew up much faster than most of the children in my class, which concluded that we didn’t have many commonalities. I was more mature than other kids, I had been through a lot more. When I looked at the others I thought: “Why the hell do the sit there and cry? It’s so damn annoying, just stop it. Get a grip!” They didn’t understand why I didn’t want to play “Kiss hunter“, I just said: “Because it’s fucking boring”.
What made you grew up so fast?
– Maybe it is like that for ”divorce-children”. We were many children and we just had mom. In some way you help each other to survive. So I helped mom very much.
When did your mom and dad got a divorce?
– When I was 5. And we were 6 siblings. We only had each other. And I was the oldest.
So you became like an extra parent for your siblings?
– Yes, in some way. At that time. But I didn’t look at it as a problem. You know how it is to be a kid – you adapt to it. You are mean to each other in school and you complain about somebody’s skin tone but then you learn how to behave.
On what level were you picked on?
– I was a “Tomboy” so I didn’t allow anyone to tease me. Else I would hit them. Which provoked them even more, mostly the guys. So I directly became a easy target.
Did you see the principal?
– Yes, a couple of times. But my mom was always on my side. So the principal got real nice yelled at. Haha, yeah mom…. God! We were such warriors.
So you beat up the guys too?
– Many girls just cry and goes to the teacher. I did my own problems. If you provoked me enough you would get a hit. It was certain things you could say to me, then you would get another hit. Did you say “Niger”, or “your mama”, or if you did something mean to somebody else you were screwed.
Were you picked on because your skin tone?
– I was the only dark girl in my class. I’m certain that children don’t judge colour if they haven’t picked it up at home. But I guess they thought that I was a funny colour and also just funny. I have thought about it now, why do we hit? It’s often the most sensitive children that snaps at once. But today I turned that to something positive.
Loreen often speaks about her Berber roots. Her parents came to Sweden from the mountains in northern Morocco. They descended from the indigenous people, which ruled over the northern part of Africa 1000 of years ago.
You often say that the word “Berber” comes from “barbarian”, that will say “the foreign”, or “the uncivilized”, as they were called by the Romans and Greeks.
She is proud of her roots and often brings them up – for example in make-up which is inspired by Berber women tattoos, in performances, in the way to use tones in the song. When she was in The Schulman Show she hugged them one by one and said “You need to accept my African vain”.
Like other Swedish people with roots in other cultures she thinks a lot about “Swedishness” and what it is.
– That is our biggest problem as “the second generation’s immigrants”. We belong to “Never Neverland”. When I’m in Morocco I feel so Swedish. And I also am so Swedish.
What is Swedish for you?
– Integrity. Almost too much integrity. Organization, I want things to be in order, and I don’t want you to come uninvited. I would prefer if you call before you come. But if we take the Moroccan side: You talk about anything, you come uninvited. There is no integrity. It’s very open, a fire culture. You talk about your problems, you ventilate, something we don’t do over here.
Do they look at you like you are a Swedish person in Morocco?
– I see myself as a Swedish person in Morocco. I notice the big difference. I notice how I rather not have too much people around me. I want to be alone sometimes. I see things black and white in Morocco, I am Swedish. But when I’m here I understand how unlike a Swede I actually am. But there is also something nice about being the second generation immigrant.
Like what?
– When you mix it up, mix raises so to speak, it makes me happy. An excuse to segregate. You are Finish and I’m Turkish. And it’s the same with the second generation’s immigrants. The culture mixes. You can no longer argue about things like: You are fucking white and I am fucking black. The second generations immigrants can no longer say “This culture is mine”. Every individual have a right to which damn culture she or he wants. You can identify with Indians if you want to. If you say “I’m a fucking Indian, go girl, go, go, you’re Indian!” I’m not much for preserving the culture. Take it and do what the hell you want with it.
You, the only dark girl in the classroom, will now represent the nation Sweden. What are your thoughts about that?
– I don’t think about it. To be honest I don’t think many does. I think just a few thinks “our nation, Sweden. I am Swedish”. If you look at what’s usually considered to be a normal Swedish person, I’m definitely not that. I don’t believe many people thinks “She will represent Sweden, she will put our name on the map”. I think you only want to have a big party in Eurovision.
Ok, how is your French?
– “Je parle un petit peu français”. I understand French, but I need to be there at least half a year before I get into it.
You speak Arabic in Morocco?
– And French and Berbic. It’s not even similar to Arabic.
How does it sound?
– Has a lot of “rh rh” sound, Arabic have a lot of “haw how how”. While berbic has “rah”, “shioren”. A lot like that. It sounds French in some way.
But you speak Arabic and Berbic?
– Yes I understand Berbic. I’m not that good at speaking it to be honest.
Why is it important to talk about your Berber background?
– Because I think you notice it in my way to deal with music. How I deliver it. Many times when I sing I’m not so present. You notice it if you stand beside me. Then when I’m back, not singing, I have a whole new energy. I’m two different persons. I get in a trance.
Loreen does Ashtanga yoga and Buddhism’s Vipassana-meditation. (Ashtanga is the physical demanding form of yoga that artist like Sting and Madonna does.)
The word Vipassana is pali, a language Buddha himself learned. It means “to see things for what they really are”. The technique behind it all says to be 1000 of years old, you can learn it at a meditation treat where you meditate together with others for ten days, but there is a strict silence rule. You are not even allowed to look the others in the eyes during these ten days.
Loreen is an ethereal and slightly “fuzzy” artist because of this… she rarely drinks alcohol. She said no to a huge Champagne bottle which the sponsor gave her when she won Melodofestivalen. You can read in Expressen that she has been in “big meditation camps where you sit quiet in a lotus position for 30 days”. Obvious not true.
Right?
– Fun that they think you sit quiet in a lotus position for 30 days, the body would just *krrr*.
Yes it’s obviously not true?
– Not in lotus position. You don’t do that. You can sit in a lotus position if you feel like it. Sit however you want for x hours a day. But you are quiet and do nothing between 8-10 hours, depending how much you can take. You start with ten days. But if you can take it there is a possibility to do 30 days. I did ten days the first time I did Vipassana.
You did ten days the first time. That is quiet hardcore.
– It is hardcore. Most of them left after 3 days.
How could you make ten days?
– Because I’m very, how can I explain this, I have a side that is very disciplined. I get that it will be good for me in the end. The third days it the worst, especially in the beginning. The first time I did it was a disaster.
In what way?
– Imagine: You are in s soundproof room. It starts to crawl in the body and you notice, shit, what is happening? You are here, you are there and you are everywhere. You get in touch with your body, for real. What have I experience? What do I have to process? And it’s the third day when people just say no, I can’t take it.
What did you experience the third day?
– My brain speeded 190km/hour, you felt pain everywhere. Why the hell do I sit here? You are between a meditative state and a feeling of being so damn depressed. But after the third day, the fourth day, your body accepted that you’re not going anywhere. Your head starts to clear up.
Mysticism wants to reach, a more real, reality. Do you see things like that too?
– Yes.
Do you call that reality God?
– Um, no.
Why not?
– I come from a liberal Muslim home. I need to point this out. It’s liberal. I’ve read most parts of the Koran and also the Bible, I’ve spoken with people about the Jews Torah. And no, it feels slim to say “God”. And, no I can’t speak about these things really, it becomes so political. We apply our own knowledge on something named God. In fact it is us. Sometimes it feels like you undermines yourself when you speak about God.
So you’re an atheist?
– No. I’m as spiritual as you can get, actually. The word God has gotten a negative tone because we, the people, misuse it.
How do you see on the discussion about you have to much cred for Melodifestivalen?
– Look at my background. I’ve been bullied, not done things like everyone else. But I have still been real to myself. I love to create and I do it from my heart. But I don’t like that just a certain type of people should have access to certain things. You understand? I had something I want to deliver. I want to deliver it to the people no matter sex, age, colour, whatever. What other stage can I do it on if I want to reach the people of Sweden?
Yes, It doesn’t become bigger than this.
– As long as I don’t have to compromised. I don’t think people would have liked it if I had to compromised.
What way are you heading? Will you still stand with one foot in the crowd?
– So I am “people crazy?” I didn’t know that.
Melodifestivalen is pretty “people crazy”.
– I don’t believe any of that, I will do the things I like. I don’t give a damn about if I have cred or not, as long as I stay true to myself.
You have said that Euphoria was inspired by the movie Terminator. Will that accompany the new album as well?
– Well, no. Terminator… That siren in Euphoria was there for a reason. Every sound that are there, especially in the the verses was there for a reason. It is about the chakras. The sound evokes a chakra, there is also certain frequencies that evokes the chakra of communication, the eye’s chakra. The siren was there because I knew that there would be a lot of sound in the arena, people talking to each other, screaming, chaos. If I put on that damn siren people will be quiet. It became quiet every time. Then you can experiment with the chakra how ever you want to.
No wonder I thought Euphoria was about God when I heard it for the first time.
– There is something that is in everything. There is a reason why I stand there as a woman and takes in [the dancer] Aus, who is very manly in his energy. He is an Indian, he lives as an Indian in Texas.
“Yes I do yoga, I feel so good afterwards”. You may say: “Why? Because it is training?” No. It is not just that. You get in a meditative state of mind. This is just a society of information we live in today. We are feed with so much all the time! So what can you do? Block the shit a focus from the inside. People say “God what a beautiful dance.” Mm, but it is not just a dance.
• Source: https://magasinetnovell.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/loreen-en-krigare-for-sverige-i-tiden/
• Translation: Amanda | http://12points-to-loreen.tumblr.com/post/29692099537/take-the-culture-and-do-what-the-hell-you-want
• Photogallery: http://gallery.lovely-loreen.com/thumbnails.php?album=253