A Closer look at Christopher
> The Danish heartthrob was here to promote his new album and be the first international act to be featured on the JOOX platform
KUALA LUMPUR was on fire when Danish heartthrob Christopher Nissen dropped by for a promotional tour of his Closer album.
The JOOX Mini Live with Christopher showcase was held at Brickfields Asia College (BAC) PJ Campus in conjunction with the singer’s role in the launch of the BAC Education App which aimed to merge education and music.
The showcase was also streamed live to all JOOX users, making it the first international act to be featured on the platform.
Ten lucky students also managed to join the I Won’t Let You Down singer for a banana leaf rice lunch prior to the show.
“The fans in Asia are really polite and the girls are much more shy [compared] to the ones in Denmark where they would like, jump on you [to get a] selfie,” jokes the 24-year-old singer.
The pop sensation performed several hits from his latest album such as I Won’t Let You Down, Tulips, and Heartbeat.
He also performed the highlypopular Twerk It Like Miley, his collaboration with American singer-songwriter Brandon Beal, as well as a cover of Major Lazer’s Cold Water.
In an interview, Christopher revealed that it took him almost two years to produce Closer, and it is a more intimate and mature one compared to his previous two albums – hence, the title name.
“I love writing songs about what I experience in my own life, people I meet, places I go, and obviously about love and girls, but for the first time, I show a different side of myself,” he said.
“There are personal songs like emotional ballads, which are completely new to me, such as Heartbeat, which is all about … how some [situations] can be really hard for people to understand when they’re not [experiencing] it.
“So ... if you could just say it with a heartbeat, or just feel the way I feel, it would be easier.”
Despite the album being more emotionally intimate, Christopher emphasised that he still included “funky, up-tempo and optimistic” songs such as Tulips, and I Won’t Let You Down.
In fact, the incredibly catchy Tulips reached the No.1 spot on the Danish music charts in 2015.
“I remember writing that song in the studio with an American songwriter [named] Coffee … It has this very cool vibe and you can hear that summer-like feel,” he said.
“It’s basically telling your girl: ‘I know I messed up, but give me a second chance because we can make this right’, you can say it with flowers or kisses, so tulips is sort of like this metaphor ... a way to say ‘I’m sorry’.”
When it comes to working with Beal, the number of collaborations they had is just what we see on the surface.
According to Christopher, they’ve actually been on tour together several times and “physically wrote all the songs together” for his previous album, Told You So.
“Brandon and I are really close friends, and we’ve known each other for eight years now,” he said. “He’s just such a talented writer and such a fun dude to be around, and [especially] in the creative process, it’s really cool to just surround yourself with people [who bring] the best out of you …
“And for Brandon, he really gets the best out of me, and I feel like I’m the best version of myself in the studio when [he’s around].”
Despite his current success, Christopher is not resting on his laurels. During his short visit here, the pop singer made an appearance on local reality TV series Akademi Fantasia to perform I Won’t Let You Down live.
Apart from Malaysia, his promotional tour in the region also includes Thailand, the Philippines, Hong Kong and a sixcity headline tour in China.