Lisa Ekdahl (born 29 July 1971 in

Hägersten Hägersten (''Heronstone'') is an urban district Urban district may refer to: * District * Urban area * Quarter (urban subdivision) * Neighbourhood Specific subdivisions in some countries: * Urban districts of Denmark * Urban districts of Germany * ...

Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...

, Sweden) is a Swedish

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

singer and songwriter. She has so far released 10 albums, most of them in

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

but some entirely in English. Her voice has been described as "child-like" and "soft, supple and smooth".

Career

In 1994, at the age of 22, Ekdahl became famous overnight in Sweden with her self-titled debut album and the No. 1 hit single "

Vem vet "Vem vet" (in English: "Who knows") is a song in Swedish written and recorded by Lisa Ekdahl, and released as a single from her 1994 album, ''Lisa Ekdahl''. The single peaked at number 4 in both Sweden and Norway. On the Eurochart Hot 100, "Vem vet ...

" ("Who Knows?"). The record sold almost 800,000 copies and she was awarded three Swedish music prizes, one of them as the nation's best artist of the year. She also enjoyed success in Denmark and Norway. She signed with EMI Records, but later recorded two pop albums with RCA/BMG: "Med Kroppen Mot Jorden" and "Bortom Det Blå" in 1996 and 1997. In 1998, she recorded the English language album "When Did You Leave Heaven", which contained jazz standards. Ekdahl has been focusing on, with great success,

Scandinavia Scandinavia; Sámi languages: /. ( ) is a subregion#Europe, subregion in Northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. In English usage, ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, ...

and Europe (most noticeably France), leaving little mark in other countries such as the United States. Her following album, "Back To Earth" (1999), was again full of jazz standards and, like her jazz debut, recorded with the Peter Nordahl Trio. In France alone, it sold over 40,000 copies. She received positive reviews for her live appearances in Great Britain from ''

The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was fo ...

'' and ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

''. Ekdahl's sixth album, "Lisa Ekdahl sings Salvadore Poe" (2000), signaled a new direction and critical esteem. As the new album's title indicates, Ekdahl exclusively sings songs written by her husband, also known as Paul DiBartolo, guitarist in New York glam metal band

Spread Eagle (band) Spread Eagle is an American hard rock band from New York City. After only a few months of formation, they were signed by MCA/Universal Records. They have released three albums: ''Spread Eagle'' (1990), '' Open To The Public'' (1993) and ''Subw ...

, primarily in the

bossa nova Bossa nova () is a style of samba developed in the late 1950s and early 1960s in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. It is mainly characterized by a "different beat" that altered the harmonies with the introduction of unconventional chords and an innovativ ...

style. Her fragile and childish voice seems to be made for this type of music. Their album was a great success in France and Scandinavia, where it sold over 120,000 copies by early 2001. She has continued to record in both Swedish and English, most recently touring Scandinavia with an acoustic tour. Her voice is variously compared to

Blossom Dearie Margrethe Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She had a recognizably light and girlish voice. Profile at AllMusicDearie performed regular engagements in London and New York City over ...

Diana Krall Diana Jean Krall (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, '' Billboard'' maga ...

, and perhaps most accurately,

Astrud Gilberto Astrud Gilberto (; born Astrud Evangelina Weinert, March 29, 1940) is a Brazilian samba and bossa nova singer. She gained international attention in the 1960s following her recording of the song "The Girl from Ipanema". Biography Astrud Gilbert ...

.Blue Coupe Review
Her hit song "Vem Vet" is also in the soundtrack of the Korean drama

Love Rain ''Love Rain'' () is a 2012 South Korean television series directed by Yoon Seok-ho. Set in the seventies and the present day, it tells a love story over two generations, with Jang Keun-suk and Im Yoon-ah playing dual roles. It aired on KBS2 from ...

. In 2016 she participated in the music show

Så mycket bättre Så mycket bättre (, "So Much Better") is a Swedish reality television show that airs on TV4 (Sweden), TV4. The basic premise is that each artist attempts to do their own version of another artist's well-known songs, with each person getting an ...

broadcast on

TV4 TV4 or TV 4 may refer to: *TV4 (Poland), a private Polish television station *TV4 (Sweden), a Swedish television network **TV4 Group, owners of the Swedish television station *South African Broadcasting Corporation TV4, a channel operated by the st ...

Personal life

She was born in Hägersten, Sweden to her parents who were a nuclear physicist and kindergarten teacher. She was raised just outside Mariefred, Sweden. She has two sisters and attended school at the Tälje Musikgymnasium. Her music is published by her company Lisa Ekdahl AB. Ekdahl has lived in New York City. In 1999, she met American composer and guitarist Salvadore Poe, former guitarist of 1990s New York sleaze rockers Spread Eagle on a flight to

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. They married in 2000, and they later collaborated on an album together. They are now divorced. She was previously married to Swedish singer

Bill Öhrström Bill Göran Fredrik Öhrström (born 2 April 1943) is a Swedish musician, singer, actor and former model. He has performed with Jukka Tolonen and Mikael Ramel. He started the club "Filips" in Stockholm in the 1960s, and also played the harmonica ...

, with whom she has a son Milton (born 23 December 1994). She also has a daughter born in 2012. She currently lives in the

Södermalm Södermalm, often shortened to just Söder, is a district and island in central Stockholm. Overview The district covers the large island of the same name (formerly called ''Åsön''). Although Södermalm usually is considered an island, wat ...

district of

Awards

* Rockbjörn-- "Best Female Artist" 1994 * Swedish Grammys—1994 :Artist of the year, Female Pop :Rock artist of the Year :Album of the Year *The Ulla Billquist scholarship

Discography

Singles

Solo albums

*1994: ''

Lisa Ekdahl Lisa Ekdahl (born 29 July 1971 in Hägersten, Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish popular music singer and songwriter. She has so far released 10 albums, most of them in Swedish but some entirely in English. Her voice has been described as "child-lik ...

'' *1996: ''

Med kroppen mot jorden ''Med kroppen mot jorden'' is a 1996 Lisa Ekdahl studio album. Track listing All song swritten by Lisa Ekdahl. #''Inte kan ödet vara så hårt'' – 4:07 #''Himlen och jag'' – 4:02 #''Små onda djävlar'' – 3:33 #''Jag tror han är en ängel' ...

'' *1997: ''

Bortom det blå ''Bortom det blå'' is an album by Swedish singer Lisa Ekdahl Lisa Ekdahl (born 29 July 1971 in Hägersten, Stockholm, Sweden) is a Swedish popular music singer and songwriter. She has so far released 10 albums, most of them in Swedish but som ...

'' *2000: ''

Sings Salvadore Poe ''Sings Salvadore Poe'' is an album by Swedish singer Lisa Ekdahl, released in 2001. The music on the album is a mixture of latin jazz, easy listening Easy listening (including mood music) is a popular music genre and radio format that was mo ...

'' *2004: '' Olyckssyster'' *2006: '' Pärlor av glas'' *2009: '' Give Me That Slow Knowing Smile'' *2014: '' Look to Your Own Heart'' *2016: ''Tolkningarna –

Säsong 7'' *2017: '' När alla vägar leder hem'' *2018: ''More of the Good''

Live albums

*2011: ''

At the Olympia Paris AT or at may refer to: Geography Austria * Austria (ISO 2-letter country code) * .at, Internet country code top-level domain United States * Atchison County, Kansas (county code) * The Appalachian Trail (A.T.), a 2,180+ mile long mountaino ...

Compilations

*2002: '' Heaven Earth & Beyond'' *2003: '' En samling sånger''

Collaborations

*1997: '' When Did You Leave Heaven'' (with the Peter Nordahl trio) *1998: '' Back to Earth'' (with the Peter Nordahl trio) *2000: Duet with

Henri Salvador Henri Salvador (18 July 1917 – 13 February 2008) was a French Caribbean comedian, singer and cabaret artist. Biography Salvador was born in Cayenne, French Guiana. His father, Clovis, and his mother, Antonine Paterne, daughter of a native Ca ...

in the song "

All I Really Want Is Love All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All ...

" on his album '' Chambre Avec Vue'' *2001: ''Kiss & Hug: From a Happy Boy'' (duet with Danish singer

Lars H.U.G. Lars H.U.G. (born Lars Haagensen on 11 September 1953 in Sorgenfri) is a Danish musician and painter. He has produced several critically acclaimed albums as a solo artist, and has performed with the group Kliché. Until the mid 1980s, he went by ...

in the song "Backwards") *2003: Duet with

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

in the song "

Where or When "Where or When" is a show tune from the 1937 Rodgers and Hart musical ''Babes in Arms''. It was first performed by Ray Heatherton and Mitzi Green. That same year, Hal Kemp recorded a popular version. The song also appeared in the film version o ...

" on his album '' As Time Goes By: The Great American Songbook 2''

References

External links

Official artist's siteA Swedish fan page (English in progress)Lisa Ekdahl tribute page (English)Lyrics Explained
Swedish lyrics explanation

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ekdahl, Lisa 1971 births Living people Swedish pop singers Swedish songwriters Swedish-language singers 21st-century Swedish singers 21st-century Swedish women singers RCA Victor artists Jive Records artists Bertelsmann Music Group artists