Spotlight

Meet Tove Lo, who adds a dark, dangerous twist to Swedish pop. By Laura Silverman

YOU’LL KNOW HER FROM… The plethora of hits she has co-written for artists including The Saturdays (‘What Are You Waiting For?’) and Girls Aloud (‘Something New’). Her writing credit on Ellie Goulding’s ‘Love Me Like You Do’, which featured on the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack, even earned her a Golden Globes nomination. Tove’s debut 2014 album Queen of the Clouds sold two million copies, and last year she won Artist of the Year at Sweden’s Grammy Awards. BIG BREAK Born Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson in Stockholm in 1987, the ‘Lo’ of Tove’s nickname – meaning ‘lynx’ in Swedish – was given to her by her godmother because of Tove’s childhood love for the animals. She wrote her first song aged 11 and, at 16, went to the Swedish equivalent of the Brit School, Rytmus Musikergymnasiet, which counts superstar singer Robyn among its alumni. After a few years in a band, a chance encounter at a party led to her joining Wolf Cousins, the songwriting collective run by Swedish pop maestro Max Martin. In 2012 she shared a London flat with fellow starlet-to-be Alicia Vikander before releasing a couple of her own tracks independently in 2013. Her song ‘Habits (Stay High)’ went viral and she signed a record deal later that year. WHAT’S THE IDEA? Tove uses writing as therapy. ‘My songs are an opportunity to be honest,’ she says. ‘I use them to deal with my issues.’ Her new album Lady Wood is full of dark pop tracks about being brash and bold. ‘Keep it Simple’, about healing after a painful relationship, makes her feel most vulnerable. ‘Writing the songs is always emotional,’ she says. WHAT NEXT? Tove says, ‘I feel pretty good living in the moment.’ She hopes to collaborate with Australian singer Sia, and would also love to make a film.

Tove Lo’s album Lady Wood is out now on Polydor