Sonja Aldén is BACK. After a lengthy five year absence from the contest, she’s returning to the Melodifestivalen stage this very weekend to compete with her song ‘I Din Himmel’ (In Your Heaven). The last time she graced that stage she ended up scoring one of the biggest radio hits of the decade in Sweden, with ‘För Att Du Finns’. And we like Sonja, so we hope that she makes something of an impression again this time around. On paper she’s certainly bringing the big guns with her – a song which has been written by herself and two of Melodifestivalen’s most consistently high quality songwriters, Peter Boström and Bobby Ljunggren.
Right then. Back in December, we had a chat with the fair lady herself about all of this. So have a read;
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scandipop: Hello Sonja, and welcome back!
Sonja: Thank you.
scandipop: 2007 was your last time here.
Sonja: Yep, five years ago now.
scandipop: Obviously the contest has missed you! Have you missed the contest?
Sonja: Thank you so much, ha ha. Actually I really feel that when I’m here now I see there’s a lot of things that I have missed. And I’m so glad to be here, and to be able to present this song which I’m very much in love with. And that feeling is the same feeling I had back in 2007 when I competed with ‘För Att Du Finns’. I’d told myself that I wouldn’t participate again unless I had that feeling. I definitely have to have that feeling. You don’t know what the outcome will be, but still – the feeling has to be there. And now I have that feeling. I love this song. I think it’s so beautiful, and vibrant.
scandipop: And can you tell us about this song?
Sonja: Well if you have heard ‘För Att Du Finns’, you’re gonna recognise the language of the music. It’s in the same family. But at the same time, it stands on its own and by itself. It’s not very much like ‘För Att Du Finns’, but it’s in the same family.
scandipop: So it’s very much a recognisable progression then.
Sonja: Exactly, yes. You will feel that it’s a song that is “her“, ha ha! So it feels very much like me.
scandipop: That’s good. Because of course Sweden loved ‘För Att Du Finns’. I heard something about it like didn’t it earn the most royalties of all Melodifestivalen songs last decade, or it holds some radio airplay record?
Sonja: Yes. It’s the song that was played on radio more than any other Melodifestivalen song for the entire ten years last decade.
scandipop: Oh my God, I didn’t know that, ha ha! Wow!
Sonja: I know! That’s pretty huge. Because that song was in 2007, so the other songs had up to seven years of a head start on it to be played! But still, it was played more. So I’m very proud. VERY proud.
scandipop: Amazing. One final question – obviously you’re gonna be focusing on the contest in February and hopefully in March too – but do you think there’ll be an album ready to be released afterwards?
Sonja: Yes! That’s the plan. I’m working on it now. So yes, my third album will definitely be released after the contest. I’ve been writing it for three years now. So now I’m finally getting there. And there’s gonna be a single released any day now – called ‘Närmre’, which is ‘Closer’ in English.
scandipop: Cool. Well thank you very much for your time Sonja, and best of luck in February!
Sonja: Thank you so much.
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Back in January we did get the brand new single from her ‘Närmre‘, which we’re still giving heavy rotation to around these parts. And next month she releases that new album ‘I Grändsandet’. You can pre-order ‘I Grändslandet’ and pick up her two earlier albums from the Scandipop Store. Marvellous.
