Scandinavian female vocalists are all the rage right now, what with Zara Larsson tearing up the pop scene. Joining her soon will no doubt be Norwegian singer Dagny Norvoll Sandvik; or Dagny, as she markets herself.
Aged 26, Dagny was ready to give up her musical career a year ago. In a Guardian interview, she revealed it was her jazz musician parents that stopped her. “I never worry about you”, her dad said after four years of low success in touring; “I don’t think there’s one route for everybody”. Sure enough, it was soon after that Radio 1 DJ Zane Lowe propelled her to stardom, premiering her most recent and euphorically catchy single, ‘Backbeat’, on his show. Then Spotify’s popular playlist ‘New Music Friday’ featured the tune, and racked her up to 300,000 listens. It’s now at 26 million.
Dagny’s vocals switch between pure and sweet to deep and gravelly; her songs are heaven for a pop lover. ‘Backbeat’ is definitely the standout of her current songs, with a beat that makes your feet tap and your head nod. But in fact, the backing track is quite simplistic; it’s all about her vocals propelling the music forward. Fans of Larsson and Danish singer MØ will love her. In the interview, Dagny insists “there are no rules in music anymore, but you still have to go out and work for success.” Having recently released her debut EP Ultraviolet (available to listen to now on Spotify), visiting the UK touring, and working on a debut album, Dagny’s certainly been working hard. Thankfully, she’s been picked up by the UK’s Island Records, so we’ll be hopefully seeing a lot of her over the next year. Expect Dagny to be right alongside her Scandinavian pop sister on the charts.
Check out Dagny on Facebook, or listen to Dagny’s ‘Backbeat’ below:
