She may not be a household name yet here in the Philippines, but little do we know this young artist is starting to make her way up there on the other side of the world.
Astrid Smeplass or Astrid S for short is 20-years-old award winning Norwegian singer and pop star that is originally from Berkak. She first proved her chops in 2013 when she placed fifth as a contestant on the Norwegian version of Pop Idol. From then on, she has seen unprecedented critical and commercial success in both her home country and across the globe.
In 2015 Astrid S won the MTV EMA for Best Norwegian Act in 2015 and has had multiple Norwegian Grammy nominations including Track of the Year for “Hurt So Good.” She has also awarded ‘Best Norwegian Act’ at the MTV European Music Awards. In 2016, she was hailed as ‘ Breakthrough Artist of the Year’ for her self-titled EP.
With all her success, it is just fittingly (I think) for her to be labeled as “Norway’s next great pop export” as Nylon said.
Just recently Astrid S releases her brand new single “Breathe”. The track is her first of new music for 2017, and follows a breakthrough year for Astrid, in which her hit single – ‘Hurt So Good’ – topped 120 million streams on Spotify alone.
I was able to talk to Astrid S a few days ago via Skype and asked her a few questions to get to know her and music more;
Rodel (R) What’s keeping you busy if you weren’t touring or doing music? Hobbies? Sports?
Astrid S (A) Friends and family. I also like to work out, cook and read books. And I love watching movies and series.
R: Any plans of doing more collaborations with other artists? If given a chance to do a collaboration with any artists, who would you want to work with?
A: I would love to work with Frank Ocean or The Weeknd!
R: Tell us more about your latest single “Breathe”?
A: It’s a song about how a moment or a person makes me loose my breath. Just a good feeling song to jam to in your car or when your out with your friends!
R: Best lessons you’ve learned for pursuing your career in music?
A: That you can make anything happen if you just work hard enough.
R: What’s coming up next to Astrid S? Any chance of visiting Manila? Final message to your fans especially to Filipinos?
A: I’m going on a tour this fall, and I can’t wait to come to the Filipinos soon! I hear that the people there are so friendly.
Yes, you read that right, Astrid S is preparing to visit the Philippines soon. So if you’re a silent fan of her or you love her songs, its time for you to be excited!
“Breathe” was produced by Oscar Holter for Wold Cousins (Tove Lo, Demi Locato, Ellie Goulding) in Los Angeles and is available at all digital music outlets. The single surpassed 3 millions streams within the first few days of its release.
To know more about Astrid visit here website www.astridsofficial.com
