Robyn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Robyn
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Robyn in 2008
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| Born |
Robin Miriam Carlsson
12 June 1979 Stockholm, Sweden
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| Years active | 1989–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Olof Inger
(m. 2002–2011)Max Vitali
(m. 2013) |
| Musical career | |
| Genres |
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| Instruments | Vocals |
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Robin Miriam Carlsson (born 12 June 1979), known as Robyn, is a Swedish singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. Her first album, Robyn Is Here (1995), had two songs that became top 10 hits in the US: "Do You Know (What It Takes)" and "Show Me Love". Her next two albums, My Truth (1999) and Don't Stop the Music (2002), were released mainly in Sweden.
Robyn became famous worldwide again with her fourth album, Robyn (2005). This album was nominated for a Grammy Award. It included popular songs like "Be Mine!" and "With Every Heartbeat". "With Every Heartbeat" even reached number one in the United Kingdom. In 2010, Robyn released three mini-albums called the Body Talk series. These albums were highly praised and earned three more Grammy nominations. They also featured three top-10 songs: "Dancing On My Own", "Hang with Me", and "Indestructible". Later, she worked with other artists on EPs like Do It Again (2014) with Röyksopp and Love Is Free (2015) with La Bagatelle Magique. Her eighth solo album, Honey, came out in 2018 and was also very successful.
Contents
Robyn's Music Journey
Early Steps in Music
Robyn started her career at a young age. In 1989, when she was 10, she voiced the character Miranda in the Swedish animated film The Journey to Melonia.
At 12, she recorded "Du kan alltid bli nummer ett" ("You Can Always be Number One"). This was the theme song for a Swedish TV show called Lilla Sportspegeln. She also performed her own song on another TV show, Söndagsöppet. A Swedish pop singer named Meja discovered Robyn in the early 1990s. Meja was impressed by Robyn's singing and helped her get a meeting with a record label. In 1993, at 14, Robyn signed with Ricochet Records Sweden. She worked with famous producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop, who helped create her unique sound.
Becoming a Pop Star: Robyn Is Here
Robyn officially began her pop music career at 15. In 1994, she signed with RCA Records and released her first single, "You've Got That Somethin'", in Sweden. Her big break in Sweden came later that year with the song "Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect)". These songs were part of her first album, Robyn Is Here, released in October 1995.
In late 1997, Robyn became famous in the US. Her dance-pop songs "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know (What It Takes)" both reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. She even performed "Show Me Love" on the American children's TV show All That. These songs also did well in the UK. After her popularity grew, Robyn needed a rest and returned to Sweden to recover.
New Music and Challenges
Robyn's second album, My Truth, came out in Sweden in May 1999. The song "Electric" was very popular, helping My Truth reach number two in Sweden. This album was about her own life. However, it was not released in the US.
In 2001, Robyn signed a new deal with Jive Records. She wanted more control over her music. But a year later, Jive Records was bought by BMG, which was her old label. Robyn felt like she was "back where I started!" In October 2002, she released Don't Stop the Music in Sweden. Songs like "Keep This Fire Burning" and "Don't Stop the Music" were played on the radio in Europe.
Starting Her Own Record Label
In 2004, Robyn decided to leave her record label after ten years. She wanted to create her own music freely. When Jive Records didn't like her new electronic pop sound for the song "Who's That Girl?", she decided to start her own label. In early 2005, she announced she was leaving Jive to create Konichiwa Records. This new label allowed Robyn to be more artistic. She worked with talented people like Klas Åhlund and the Swedish duo The Knife.
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Robyn released the song "Be Mine!" in March 2005. Her fourth album, Robyn, became her first number-one album in Sweden a month later. This album mixed electronic music, rap, R&B, and new-age sounds. Critics loved Robyn, and it won her three Swedish Grammy Awards in 2006 for Best Album, Best Writer, and Best Pop Female. The album made people around the world interested in Robyn.
In December 2006, Robyn released The Rakamonie EP in the UK. A new version of Robyn was released in the UK the next month. It included two new songs: "With Every Heartbeat" (with Kleerup) and "Cobrastyle" (a cover of a song by Teddybears). "With Every Heartbeat" became a number-one hit in the UK in July 2007. Robyn also sang on songs for other artists like Basement Jaxx and Christian Falk. In 2008, the US version of Robyn was released. Robyn toured briefly in the US and opened for Madonna's tour in Europe.
The Body Talk Trilogy
Robyn released the first album of her Body Talk series, Body Talk Pt. 1, in June 2010. The song "Dancing On My Own" came out before the album. This song became Robyn's first number-one hit in Sweden and a top-10 hit in the UK and US dance charts. In July 2010, she performed a cover of Alicia Keys' "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart". Robyn also toured with American singer Kelis to promote the Body Talk albums.
Body Talk Pt. 2 was released in September 2010. It included a song with American rapper Snoop Dogg called "U Should Know Better". Robyn performed "Dancing On My Own" with deadmau5 at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards. She explained that she released three albums in one year because she felt she needed to. She said it helped her stay inspired. However, she also said she wouldn't do it again because it "empties" her creatively. The final album in the series, Body Talk, was released in November 2010. It included a powerful version of "Indestructible". The Body Talk albums sold many copies in the US.
In 2010, Robyn appeared on an episode of Gossip Girl, where she sang an acoustic version of "Hang with Me". "Dancing On My Own" was also featured in the episode. In 2012, Robyn opened for Coldplay on some of their tour dates in the US. In 2013, she appeared on the song "Go Kindergarten" with Paul Rudd and Sean Combs. That year, she received a special award from the KTH Royal Institute of Technology for her "artistic contributions and embrace of technology". She planned to donate the prize money to a good cause.
Collaborations and EPs
In 2014, Robyn sang on Neneh Cherry's song "Out of the Black". She also announced a tour and a mini-album called Do It Again with Röyksopp. The tour ended early after the death of her friend and collaborator, Christian Falk. An EP of their last work together, Love Is Free, was released soon after. Robyn performed at the Popaganda Festival in Sweden the next year, singing songs she wrote with Falk.
In May 2016, Robyn performed a dance set of remixed versions of her songs at the Boston Calling Music Festival. She also released Trust Me, an EP with Mr. Tophat, in November 2016. The following year, she appeared on the song "That Could Have Been Me" from Todd Rundgren's album White Knight.
Honey and Recent Work
In March 2017, a new Robyn song called "Honey" was used in the final season of the HBO TV series Girls. The show's creator, Lena Dunham, chose it from Robyn's unfinished songs. Robyn finished the song especially for the show.
In February 2018, Robyn told a fan on Twitter that her new album would be released "some time this year". She later debuted the full version of "Honey" at a party. On August 1, 2018, her new song "Missing U" was released. Robyn also shared a mini-documentary about the song, thanking her fans who had waited for her new music. On September 19, 2018, Robyn announced her upcoming album would be called Honey, released on October 26, 2018. In November 2018, Robyn announced a tour across North America and Europe for 2019. On September 27, 2019, she performed in Kungsträdgården in Stockholm during the international climate strikes.
In February 2020, Robyn received the Songwriter of the Decade award at the NME Awards. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she started a series of live-stream DJ sets from Stockholm called Robyn Presents Club DOMO. She also released special remixes of songs from her Honey album for Record Store Day. In the next two years, Robyn collaborated on songs like "Impact" with SG Lewis and TEED, "Salt Licorice" with Jónsi, and "Call My Name" with Joakim Åhlund and Björn Yttling's project Smile.
In September 2021, Rolling Stone magazine ranked "Dancing On My Own" at number 20 on their list of "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". This was the highest entry from the decade. Also that month, Robyn signed a management contract with Young Artists. In November 2021, Robyn received an Honorary Award from the Swedish Music Publishers Board for her "significant contributions" to music.
Robyn's Unique Style
Robyn has a soprano voice. Her music often explores the feeling of "the joy of heartbreak," as described by Alex Morris of Rolling Stone. In the 1990s, Robyn started as a mainstream pop-R&B singer. However, she felt limited by big record labels. Andrew R. Cho of NBCNews.com said her early work sounded like typical 1990s R&B. When she became an independent artist in 2005, she changed her style to experimental electronic and synth-pop music. Her album Robyn (2005) still had some R&B and hip hop influences, but mostly used electronic sounds.
Writer and musician Sasha Frere-Jones said Robyn is great at making fun, easy-to-listen-to pop music. Her songs are "light but strong" and can carry humor and deep emotions. Her lyrics often talk about female strength and independence. According to Jake Hall of i-D, the term "sad banger" (a song that makes you want to dance but also feel emotional) has become strongly linked to Robyn since "Dancing on My Own".
While making her album Honey, Robyn realized she didn't want to create "tidy pop songs" anymore. She wanted to explore music that was hypnotic and didn't have a clear beginning or end. She said this change happened because she didn't feel the need to make more big hits. Robyn prefers writing with other artists. She finds it frustrating that people expect women to write only lyrics, while men make the music. Her collaborators have said that she is just as involved in the technical work as they are.
Personal Life
Robyn's parents ran an independent theater group. Growing up in this environment influenced her sense of style. She learned how clothes can be used to change your personality or show who you are. Robyn has two younger siblings.
Robyn dated Olof Inger from 2002 to 2011. Later, she became engaged to videographer Max Vitali. She mentioned him as her fiancé in a 2013 interview. They became friends while making the music video for "Be Mine!" and often work together. Robyn and Vitali separated for a while after Body Talk was released, but they got back together by 2018. In July 2023, Robyn shared on Instagram that she had a son named Tyko, who was born in April 2022.
Robyn's Impact on Music
Many artists look up to Robyn. British pop star Charli XCX said Robyn helped open the way for pop stars who are a bit different from the usual Top 40 artists. Robyn's ability to succeed even after facing rejection has made her an LGBTQ icon.
Her first album, Robyn Is Here, helped launch Max Martin's career in pop music. It also created a demand for "white girl R&B singers" like Mandy Moore and Billie Piper. When Robyn turned down Jive Records' offer to sign her in the US, the label focused on a young artist named Britney Spears. Jive's head called Spears "an American Robyn – a Europop teen queen, with an added dash of 'girl next door.'" Max Martin ended up producing much of Spears's first album, ...Baby One More Time. Spears was seen as "easier to control" than Robyn.
Robyn's 2005 album Robyn is considered a very important pop album of the 2000s. It helped show that pop music could be taken seriously by music critics. It gained praise from the indie magazine Pitchfork, which had rarely covered pop albums before. This praise "placed synthpop on the same level as serious, artistic acts" like Arcade Fire. Robyn was seen as a sign that rock music was becoming more open to non-guitar sounds, and that pop music was becoming more dance-focused and experimental.
Robyn helped shape modern pop music by taking creative control. She brought indie elements into mainstream pop and included feminist and political themes in her music long before it was common for pop stars to do so. Variety magazine said her work was a pioneering force in the rise of alternative-pop music starting in the late 2000s. Artists like Carly Rae Jepsen, Lorde, Taylor Swift, and Christine and the Queens have said Robyn influenced them. NPR called Robyn "The 21st Century's Pop Oracle," and The New York Times called her "Pop's Glittery Rebel."
Albums
- Robyn Is Here (1995)
- My Truth (1999)
- Don't Stop the Music (2002)
- Robyn (2005)
- Body Talk Pt. 1 (2010)
- Body Talk Pt. 2 (2010)
- Body Talk (2010)
- Honey (2018)
Awards
Images for kids
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Robyn in 2008
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Robyn performing at the 2008 Nobel Peace Prize concert
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Robyn at the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize concert
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Robyn performing at the Fridays for Future climate demonstration in Stockholm, Sweden on 27 September 2019.
See also
- Popular music in Sweden
