ASTRID S: Bio

EARLY LIFE
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Astrid S's real name is Astrid Smeplass. She was born 29th of October, 1996 (aged 21) in Rennebu, Norway. 

She was raised in Berkåk, Norway (small town of less than 1000 people). Astrid found herself drawn to music at a young age. She began singing when she was a toddler and began playing piano when she was six. 

As she got older, she was inspired by her dad's favourite artists such as Maroon 5, Anastacia, and the band Keane. "I grew up listening to music where I didn't understand the words," "American and English pop music was very popular in Scandanavia. Even Norwegian artists sang in English, so I found myself drawn to the melodies in a song, or just how the words were sung, which is still reflected in my music today." 






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After hearing John Mayer when she was 15, she decided that she wanted to write her own songs. "He changed my way of listening to music," "That's when I bought a guitar." 









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START OF SINGING CAREER
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At 16, Astrid entered the Norwegian version of Pop Idol and made it all the way to the finals, coming out in fifth place. "I knew this was what I wanted to do with my life and that I had to put all my other plans aside and really go for it because it just gave me a feeling I'd never felt before". 

Astrid decided to quit school and move to Oslo (capital of Norway) to pursue her music career, she describes that as a major turning point in her life. "The plan was to try it for a year and then either go back to school or get a job, but I never went back". "Walking down the streets of Oslo, I remember thinking that I've never felt so happy". 

Two months after she moved to Oslo, she got signed a publishing deal with Sony/ATV and released her 2014 debut 
single '2AM', which went five times platinum and led to an MTV EMA win for Best Norwegian Act, a Norwegian Grammy for 'Newcomer of the Year' and a sold-out tour. 

After the track "2AM", she produced the tracks "Hyde", "Running Out" with Matoma, "Air" with Shawn Mendes and "Waiting for Love" with Avicii. 

In 2016, Astrid released her self-title debut EP and scored a blockbuster hit with "Hurts So Good" which led to other major opportunities, including European and North American tours with Troye Sivan. Idolator called her "Scandinavia's next break-out pop princess" and The Guardian called her an artist "waiting in the wings of global stardom". She has also been headlining shows in Los Angeles and New York City, which sold out in less than 48 hours. 




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Her latest single, "Breathe" has reached over 25 million worldwide streams and was selected as a "Tune of the Week" by BBC Radio 1. Atwood Magazine stated that the track "continues to demonstrate Astrid S's prominence in the electro-pop realm". She received a lot of success from her electropop tracks 'Hurts So Good' and her latest single 'Breathe'. 

As she plans to release more new music this year, Astrid says she wants people to feel understood when they listen to her songs. "I want them to feel like they belong and that they're not alone. I want them to just feel happy and just forget about all their worries for a bit. It’s nice to think that I have the opportunity to make someone’s day a little better. Because the focus for me is on bringing people together because they like to listen to my music and that’s where they feel like they belong.”

Found on: astridsofficial.com/#bio

TRACK BY TRACK

“’Breathe’ could be about that overwhelming feeling of being in love,” Astrid says, “but for me it’s about these moments over the past year that took my breath away, like having a hit single, going on my first tour, and playing some of the festivals back home in Norway that I’ve always dreamed of. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had to pinch myself.”

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"Breathe" is the first track to be released from Astrid's latest EP, Party's Over, which finds her taking her music in a darker, more left-of-centre direction with the minimalist, club-friendly "Bloodstream", which she says is about "being haunted by an ex and how everything you do and every place you go reminds you of that person" and "Does She Know", which explores the pain around realising that someone you loved has moved on and is in love with someone else. She says, "That's a tough song for me to sing live, because it conjures up so many emotions" and "the recording really captures the feeling I had in my throat and my stomach when we wrote it and I get that feeling every time I perform it". 

'Party’s Over' veers into lighter territory with its title track, which is about wanting to stay in a perfect moment forever. “I often find myself feeling nostalgic for something before it’s even ended,” Astrid says. “When I was on tour with Troye Sivan, I felt wistful about the tour and it wasn’t even over yet.” On “Such A Boy” Astrid questions the conventional wisdom that guys aren’t as emotional as girls. “Boys are even more or at least as emotional as girls!” Astrid says. “I feel like I’ve grown up with everyone saying ‘Don’t be such a girl’ to my brother if he was being emotional and it made me angry because it’s not shameful to have feelings.”

Found on: astridsofficial.com/#bio