Aurora (singer) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Aurora
Aurora in 2024
Background information
Birth name	Aurora Aksnes
Born	(1996-06-15) 15 June 1996 (age 29) Stavanger, Norway
Genres	Art pop synth-pop electropop
Occupation(s)	Singer songwriter record producer
Instruments	Vocals piano
Years active	2012–present
Labels	Decca Glassnote Petroleum

Aurora Aksnes (born 15 June 1996), known simply as Aurora, is a singer, songwriter, and music producer from Norway. She was born in Stavanger and grew up in Høle and Os. Aurora started writing songs and learning to dance when she was six years old. Her unique and dreamy music style has made her very popular, earning her the nickname "Fairy of Pop".

Aurora first became known in Norway as a teenager. She quickly became one of the country's most famous pop artists. Her first studio album, All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend (2016), received good reviews. It was number one on Norway's music charts for two weeks. She then released a two-part album: Infections of a Different Kind (Step 1) in 2018 and A Different Kind of Human (Step 2) in 2019. Her fourth album, The Gods We Can Touch (2022), was her first album to reach the top ten in the UK. It was also her second number-one album in Norway. Her fifth album, What Happened to the Heart? (2024), was a top-ten hit in the UK, Germany, Norway, Scotland, and the Netherlands.

Aurora is known for mixing electropop, folk, and art pop music. Many see her as a leader in the Norwegian art pop music scene. She first learned to play the piano. Over time, she also started playing percussion and helping to produce her music. Besides her own songs, she has worked with many artists. These include The Chemical Brothers, Jacob Collier, and Hans Zimmer. Aurora has also made music for movies, TV shows, and video games. Some examples are Frozen 2, Wolfwalkers, Netflix's One Piece series, and Assassin's Creed.

Aurora's Early Life and Music Journey

Growing Up in Norway (1996–2011)

View of Lysefjord in Os, where Aurora grew up

Aurora Aksnes was born on 15 June 1996 in Stavanger, Norway. She is the youngest of three daughters. Her parents are May Britt Froastad, a midwife, and Jan Øystein Aksnes, a salesman. Aurora spent her early years in Høle, a small town. There, she developed a love for nature, singing, and traditional clothes.

Later, her family moved to Drange. This is a quiet village in the mountains of Os, near Bergen. Aurora described Drange as a peaceful place with lots of trees and not many cars. She felt very safe and connected to nature there. She loved climbing trees and spending time alone in the forests. These moments helped her think deeply and discover her own thoughts.

Aurora also loved animals and had pet cats. She had a unique hobby of collecting dead insects, like moths. These insects later became a symbol for her first album.

One of her first music memories was finding an electric keyboard in her parents' attic. It belonged to her older sister. Aurora was fascinated by it. She started learning piano at age six. She would copy classical music at first, then began making her own tunes. By age nine, she was writing her own songs. She was inspired by artists like Leonard Cohen and Enya.

Aurora faced some sad losses in her childhood. These experiences led her to learn sign language. She also wrote a song called "Little Boy in the Grass" to honor friends lost in tragic events. This song was released in 2015.

Starting Her Music Career (2012–2013)

At first, Aurora kept her music to herself. Her parents did not push her to pursue music as a career. She also thought about becoming a doctor or a dancer. She trained in dance from ages 6 to 16. She even performed in a dance group. Aurora did not like her own singing voice at first. This made her hesitate about becoming a singer.

Her first known song was "The Lonely Man." She also wrote "I Had a Dream" about global challenges. She once performed it at her high school. Aurora's big break happened by accident. A classmate uploaded a recording of her song "Puppet" online. This song was a Christmas gift for her parents. The video quickly got many views in Norway. This helped her gain early fans on Facebook.

In 2013, a music management company found her work. They invited her to their office. Aurora was unsure at first. But her mother encouraged her to share her music. She saw that Aurora's songs could connect with many people.

First Album Success (2014–2017)

Aurora at Green Man Festival in 2015

After her song "Puppet" became popular, Aurora signed music deals in 2014. She released two more songs, "Awakening" and "Under Stars," that year. Her unique voice and musical talent received praise in Europe and the United States. This showed she was a promising new artist.

In May 2015, she released her first EP, Running with the Wolves. It got good reviews and was played on BBC Radio. The main song from the EP, "Runaway", became very popular in 2021. It went viral on TikTok and reached high spots on music charts. Singer Billie Eilish even said "Runaway" inspired her to start her music career.

After her EP, Aurora performed at big music festivals. Her next song, "Murder Song (5, 4, 3, 2, 1)" (released in September 2015), was praised by radio stations and music blogs. Later that year, she covered Oasis' song "Half the World Away" for a Christmas advertisement. This song reached number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. In December, she performed at the Nobel Peace Prize Concert. She called it a "deeply meaningful" event.

Aurora on the All My Demons Tour in 2016, her first big concert tour

Aurora's first full album, All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend, came out in March 2016. Critics loved it. The album's songs explored themes of fantasy, feelings, life, and death. It was number one on Norway's music charts for two weeks. Aurora was the first new Norwegian artist since 2014 to have a number-one debut album. The album won an award for Pop Soloist and sold over 500,000 copies worldwide. Before the album came out, Aurora's concert in Os sold out very quickly. She then went on a year-long international concert tour.

In 2016, Aurora also covered David Bowie's "Life on Mars" for the TV show Girls. She won awards for Newcomer of the Year and for her international success. Aurora made her first American TV appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. She performed her song "Conqueror". She also appeared on other TV shows.

Two-Part Album and Frozen 2 (2017–2020)

Aurora pictured at a club in Paris, France, in March 2018

After her first album, Aurora announced in May 2016 that she was working on her second album. In 2017, she covered "Scarborough Fair" for a Brazilian TV show.

In April 2018, Aurora released "Queendom". This was the first song from her new two-part album. She was very involved in making the music. The new songs talked about important topics like kindness and strength. The music video for "Queendom" showed how important it is to accept all kinds of love. Aurora performed new songs at festivals like Lollapalooza.

The first part of her album, Infections of a Different Kind (Step 1), came out in September 2018. Aurora said its last song was "the most important song I've ever written." The second part, A Different Kind of Human (Step 2), followed in June 2019. Songs like "Animal" and "The Seed" were released from it. Aurora went on a tour to support both parts of the album.

In April 2019, Aurora helped write and sing on three songs for The Chemical Brothers' album No Geography. Later that year, she sang backing vocals for "Into the Unknown" from Disney's Frozen 2. She performed it live at the 92nd Academy Awards in February 2020 with Idina Menzel. Her solo version of the song was released in March 2020.

The Gods We Can Touch and Collaborations (2020–2023)

Aurora performing at the Pryzm club in Kingston upon Thames (2022)

In May 2020, Aurora released "Exist for Love". She said it was her first love song. She made the music video herself during the time of global lockdowns. This song marked a "new era" for her music. That year, she also recorded a song for a Norwegian Christmas TV show. She sang on other artists' albums and re-recorded "Running with the Wolves" for the animated movie Wolfwalkers.

Aurora's fourth album, The Gods We Can Touch, was released in January 2022. It was very popular. It became her first top-ten album in the UK and her first number-one album in Norway since her debut. Songs like "Cure for Me" and "Giving In to the Love" were released before the album. After the album, Aurora showed a virtual concert film called A Touch of the Divine. She then went on a world tour to promote the album. She performed at many music festivals.

Aurora by Paul S. Amundsen (2022)

In 2022, Aurora worked with many other artists. She sang on songs for Wu Qing-feng and Sondre Lerche. She also released "Hunting Shadows" for the 15th anniversary of the Assassin's Creed video game series. Her collaboration with Hans Zimmer included singing for the soundtrack of the BBC show Frozen Planet II. Aurora won awards for her international success and her impact on Norwegian music.

Aurora also worked with the video game Sky: Children of the Light. She sang for its opening and closing songs. In October 2022, a virtual concert with Aurora happened inside the game. It even set a Guinness World Record for "Most Users in a Concert-themed Virtual World" with over 10,000 players.

Latest Album and Tours (2023–Present)

Aurora performing in Kristiansand, Norway, in July 2024

In January 2023, Aurora hinted that she was working on her fifth album. That month, she worked with Tom Odell on the song "Butterflies". She also covered Nick Drake's "Pink Moon" and released "My Sails Are Set" for the live-action One Piece TV series.

Aurora's fifth album, What Happened to the Heart?, was announced in March and released in June 2024. The album mixes indie pop and disco music. It was a top-ten album in several countries. In October 2023, Aurora teased new music online. The next month, she released "Your Blood", her first solo song in almost two years. Before the album came out, she also released "The Conflict of the Mind" and "Some Type Of Skin". She also went on a tour in Norway. The album was nominated for awards.

To promote What Happened to the Heart?, Aurora went on her fifth concert tour, called What Happened to the Earth?. About 275,000 people attended her concerts. Before her concert at Wembley Arena, Aurora held a free exhibition. It showed her stage outfits and art, tracing her career journey. Forbes magazine included Aurora on their "30 Under 30" list for 2025. She also received the Silver Clef Award for Contemporary Music. Besides her solo work, she sang on a song for Bring Me the Horizon's album. She also worked with Jacob Collier on a song performed in the Arctic. This was to raise awareness for ocean and climate protection.

Aurora's Music Style

Inspirations

Aurora's cited influencers, such as musician Leonard Cohen (left) and Björk (right)

Growing up, Aurora did not have much access to radio or music TV channels. She has said she listened to very few artists when she started singing. She has mentioned Enya, Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, the Beatles, Johnny Cash, Björk, and Kate Bush as big influences. She said her first album she bought was Dylan's Blonde on Blonde.

Aurora also loves heavy metal music. She has called the French band Gojira her "favorite band." She first heard their music when she was about 11 years old. She described it as "so hard and so intense and dark, and it felt like an explosion." Aurora has also listened to bands like Mastodon and Metallica. She also loves many Scandinavian heavy metal bands and David Bowie. Her love for heavy metal inspired her EP For the Metal People.

Aurora has covered songs by artists who inspire her. These include "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Life on Mars". She has said she does not like listening to music often. She feels it is "noise" or "interference" because she has "music in my mind all the time." She also mentioned she does not use music streaming platforms like iTunes or Spotify. She prefers to listen to her favorite artists' music only when she travels.

Musical Sound and Themes

Aurora's music style is very varied. It includes art pop, Nordic-folk, synth-pop, electropop, and electro-folk. She is often called a pioneer of the Norwegian art pop scene. Many consider her one of Norway's most successful artists. Critics describe her as a "poetic author of art-pop" and an "unaffectedly curious artist." Her songs are a "mix of sizzling synth-pop, and Nordic-folk." Some describe her music as "dark electro-pop" or "darkly romantic electro-folk."

Aurora has a soprano vocal range. Her voice is often described as "dreamy" or "otherworldly." She often uses vocal sounds like "ah," "oh," and "la" in her music. Aurora writes her songs in English. She has also sung songs in her native Norwegian language. Since her album Infections of a Different Kind (Step 1), she has started using an "emotional language" that she created. This helps change the feeling and meaning of her performances. She mainly plays the piano. She also knows how to play other instruments like the ukulele, guitar, and harp. She sometimes helps with the percussion and other parts of producing her songs.

Aurora's Achievements

Aurora has received many awards and much praise since she became known in Europe. In 2016, she won an award for her international success with her first EP, Running with the Wolves. She also won the award for Newcomer of the Year in Norway. That same year, she was nominated for Best Norwegian Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards.

Her first album, All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend (2016), won an award for Norwegian Album of the Year and Pop Soloist. Aurora also received the P3 Prize for her big impact on Norwegian music. She was included in the Forbes "30 Under 30" list. As of July 2021, Aurora had sold over one million albums worldwide.

Discography

Studio albums

• All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend (2016)
• Infections of a Different Kind (Step 1) (2018)
• A Different Kind of Human (Step 2) (2019)
• The Gods We Can Touch (2022)
• What Happened to the Heart? (2024)

Written Works

• The Gods We Can Touch (2023)
• What Happened to the Heart? (2024)

Videography

Filmography

Television

Ludography

Video games

Tours

• All My Demons Tour (2016–2017)
• 2018–2019 tour
• The Gods We Can Touch Tour (2022–2023)
• 2024 Norwegian tour
• What Happened to the Earth? (2024–2025)

See also

In Spanish: Aurora Aksnes para niños

• Music of Norway
• List of Norwegian musicians
• List of number-one albums in Norway