Malin Sofia Katarina Berggren (born 31 October 1970) is a Swedish singer-songwriter, best known as a former member of the pop music band
Ace of Base. Having been interested and involved in music since her childhood, she formed the band in 1987, along with her sister
Jenny
Jenny may refer to:
* Jenny (given name), a popular feminine name and list of real and fictional people
* Jenny (surname), a family name
Animals
* Jenny (donkey), a female donkey
* Jenny (gorilla), the oldest gorilla in captivity at the time of ...
, her brother
Jonas
Jonas may refer to:
Geography
* Jonas, Netherlands, Netherlands
* Jonas, Pennsylvania, United States
* Jonas Ridge, North Carolina, United States
People with the name
* Jonas (name), people with the given name or surname Jonas
* Jonas, one o ...
and their friend
Ulf Ekberg
Ulf Gunnar Ekberg (born 6 December 1970), also known as Buddha, is a Swedish singer-songwriter, musician, businessman and television and film producer, best known as a founding member of the pop group Ace of Base, along with siblings Jonas Bergg ...
. Before forming Ace of Base, Malin sang in her church's choir.
She was born in
Gothenburg, Sweden.
When Ace of Base was signed to Danish label
Mega Records
Mega Records was a Nashville, Tennessee-based music label founded in 1970 by former RCA Records executive Brad McCuen along with Harry E. Pratt. Its most successful recording artist was Sammi Smith who also recorded the label's very first single. ...
in 1990, Malin, or Linn as she became known, chose to put her teaching career on hold. But while her sister Jenny has stated she always wanted to be a singer, Linn has never said anything similar. On the contrary, in 1997 Linn said: "I wanted to sing; I never wanted to be a singer". Linn's vocal range is
contralto
A contralto () is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range is the lowest female voice type.
The contralto's vocal range is fairly rare; similar to the mezzo-soprano, and almost identical to that of a countertenor, typica ...
.
Ace of Base
Frontwoman (1992–1996)
During the promotion for Ace of Base's first album, Linn was the principal lead vocalist for the majority of the singles and was generally the focus in the videos, although on some singles ("
The Sign", "
Waiting for Magic") and album tracks Jenny and Linn shared leads. Linn had a somewhat minor role in the composition of ''
Happy Nation
''Happy Nation'' is the debut studio album by Swedish pop group Ace of Base. It was initially released in Denmark on 2 November 1992 by Mega Records. During development of the record, the group was heavily influenced by a Jamaican reggae ban ...
'' and ''
The Sign'', only having co-writing credits on one track on a re-release of the former. She was influential in the development of "
All That She Wants
"All That She Wants" is a song by Swedish group Ace of Base. It was released in Scandinavia in 1992 as the second single from their first studio album, ''Happy Nation'' (1992), and in the following year, it was released as the first single from ...
", demanding that the track be changed from major key to minor.
In 1994, a German girl invaded the Berggren family home, targeting Linn. Linn was not present, but the girl attacked Jenny and her mother with a knife. This incident had a large impact on Linn.
During the release of the group's second album, ''
The Bridge'', the focus in both vocals and media became more equal with her younger sister, Jenny. Linn had a larger role in the composition of ''The Bridge'' and wrote and produced several songs for the album. Following the completion of the album, it was reported that Linn developed unspecified recurrent vocal problems.
Beginning in late 1995, Linn began to express discomfort in how successful the band had become, explaining in an interview "this business, I don't want to be in it for too long." She later remarked in a 1996 interview: "All this wasn't my plan. For me, this is too big, especially with the success in America. It doesn't look like it, but it costs a lot of energy to push yourself to success on this level. We have to push forward, but I just can't, I want to push backwards." She also explained her fear of flying, remarking "when the plane goes down, my heart skips a beat and I can't breathe, talk, speak or move." The band went on 179 flights for music promotion in 1995, which made Linn disenchanted with touring.
In the same interview, she alluded to her plans for the future: "I've been thinking about travelling by train or car and doing very little promotion." In the midst of promotion in Asia for ''The Bridge'' in the spring of 1996, Linn left prematurely, leaving the rest of the band members to continue in her absence. Her final performance with the band as a frontwoman was of "
Beautiful Life" at the
World Music Awards
The World Music Awards is an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event is based in Monte Carlo. Awards are presented to the world' ...
in May 1996.
Background role (1997–2003)
In 1997, it was reported that Linn would venture into a solo project, releasing the song "Lapponia", which was previously submitted for inclusion on ''The Bridge'' and later for ''
Flowers
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...
''. The song was to be accompanied by a documentary about
Sápmi
(, smj, Sábme / Sámeednam, sma, Saepmie, sju, Sábmie, , , sjd, Са̄мь е̄ммьне, Saam' jiemm'n'e) is the cultural region traditionally inhabited by the Sámi people. Sápmi is in Northern and Eastern Europe and includes the ...
culture. Despite this, the song never received an official release.
Beginning in 1997, Linn appeared at her band's concerts only to perform in the background behind keyboards.
In Linn's last personal television interview, from 1997,
she stated her wish to "try what Jenny has done" by no longer being the focus of the band. In April 1997, the band performed "Ravine" at the
World Music Awards
The World Music Awards is an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event is based in Monte Carlo. Awards are presented to the world' ...
with Linn miming keyboard playing in the far background of the stage.
Claes Cornelius at Mega Records said it was because she did not wish to wear the heavy make-up the performance would have required.
In July 1997, the group performed a concert for
Princess Victoria's 20th birthday. Linn generally performed keyboards in the background for most of the concert, but performed a live a cappella song in the foreground prior to the main show. That same year, both Jenny and Linn appeared at the ''Swedish Grammis'' as presenters for the "best song" award.
The first official press photos released for the ''
Flowers
A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechanism ...
'' / ''Cruel Summer'' albums, released on 21 March 1998, show Linn in equal or greater focus than that of her bandmates. However, many future promotional materials for the albums, as well as those used in the album booklets, contain blurred, unsmiling, distinctly unhappy photographs of her. The ''Flowers'' album in particular uses the infamous 'blue lines' photograph, where Linn's unhappy image is bizarrely hidden behind the booklet's blue line design. According to Jonas, Clive Davis's insistence that Linn record "
Everytime It Rains
Originally written for Annie Lennox, "Everytime It Rains" is the fourth single released from Swedish band Ace of Base's album ''Flowers'' in the UK, featured on a re-release of the album. The song was written by Rick Nowels, Billy Steinberg ...
" for the ''
Cruel Summer'' album in 1998 was "the tipping point" for Linn's withdrawal from the band and that it "was the worst thing for her". Jenny had recorded a version of the song, but
Arista Records was unhappy with this version and pressed the band for Linn to record a version featuring only her vocals.
Upon the release of the albums, Linn's vocal contributions were reduced in comparison to the group's previous releases. Beginning with "
Life is a Flower
"Life Is a Flower" is a song by the Swedish group Ace of Base, released in Europe on 6 April 1998 by Mega Records as the first single from the group's third album, ''Flowers'' (1998). The song peaked at number-one in Hungary and was a top-ten ...
", Linn's appearance in the band's music videos became much less than it had been in previous videos. She no longer mimed her vocal parts in the videos and her screen time was drastically shortened. Her image in the videos became at times blurred ("
Cruel Summer") or almost nonexistent ("
Travel to Romantis
"Travel to Romantis" is the third single from ''Flowers'', an album by Swedish pop band Ace of Base. The song was released on 16 November 1998 in Germany and Scandinavia and followed the singles "Life Is a Flower" and " Cruel Summer".
Critical ...
"). That year, Linn walked off the set of the "Cruel Summer" music video in Rome whilst filming; her manager said it was because she did not wish to appear in the foreground of the video.
Director Nigel Dick later revealed she would not have appeared at all, were it not for his insistence. Linn infrequently took part in group interviews with her other band members throughout 1998 for the promotion of the ''Flowers'' album, however, her participation was often minimal, and in many cases the band performed as a trio. In one such interview, however, Linn expressed her desire to further her music production skills. That year, ''
Bravo
Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels
*Bravo (band), a Russian rock band
* Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984
*Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing company ...
'' magazine claimed that Linn was seriously ill, based on Linn's odd appearance on Germany's television spot ''
The Dome'', and photos appearing in ''Bravo''.
Linn granted one final radio interview on Mix FM in
Lebanon
Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...
in late 1998, where she talked about new album plans and sang "
All That She Wants
"All That She Wants" is a song by Swedish group Ace of Base. It was released in Scandinavia in 1992 as the second single from their first studio album, ''Happy Nation'' (1992), and in the following year, it was released as the first single from ...
" a capella.
The band's management and record companies have explained Linn's odd behaviour with a number of reasons. In 1998, the band announced via their website that they would be placing media focus on Jenny due to Linn having recurring vocal problems.
[ Linn's long-time fear of flying has often been cited as the reason for her absence at the band's concerts. However, Linn also did not appear at events in Gothenburg and ]Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
, where she would not have had to fly. The other band members have been somewhat reluctant to explain what has happened to Ace of Base's former lead singer. They have stated that she has always been a shy and retiring person and was happy to let Jenny lead the band, while Ulf Ekberg once claimed Linn had a "camera phobia". The knife attack on Jenny and her mother in 1994 may have also increased her reluctance to appear in public.[ In 2007, Ulf commented that Linn withdrew from the band's activities "for the simple reason that she did not want to articipate"]
In the "C'est la Vie (Always 21)
"C'est la Vie (Always 21)" is the first new single released from Ace of Base's first greatest hits album, '' Singles of the 90s''. It was produced by Jimmy James Ekgren, Sonny Peterson and Sigurd Rosnes of JPR Productions. It was released in E ...
" music video, filmed in 1999, Linn's image was no longer blurred or out of focus, and she appeared to be happy and an active participant. However, she still did not mime during her parts in the song and her screen time was significantly less than her bandmates. A photoshoot taken at the same time similarly shows her more in the spotlight. During this time, the group began promoting mainly as a duo with Jenny and Ulf, a strategy that Jonas remarked led to "less questions" about Linn's lack of participation, however, Linn did attend some performances of the single, albeit still relegated to a background role. In 2002, Linn co-wrote three tracks with her bandmates on the group's release ''Da Capo
Da capo (, also , ) is an Italian musical term that means "from the beginning" (literally, "from the head"). It is often abbreviated as D.C. The term is a directive to repeat the previous part of music, often used to save space, and thus is a ...
''. However, her vocals appeared on fewer than half of the album's tracks. Her last public appearance was during the promotion of ''Da Capo'' in September 2002, where she showed up to a German television performance and mimed playing the keyboards in the background. A fan snapped a picture of a calm, smiling Linn outside the studio. Her final appearance with Ace of Base was in the Unspeakable music video which was filmed in December 2002. This video featured Linn in her first and only close-up shots in a music video since 1996. Linn has not been pictured since that year. On 24 September 2003, Linn's profile on the band's official website was updated, and it was noted that her favourite song from the ''Da Capo'' album was "Ordinary Day".
Hiatus (2004–2007)
In the spring of 2005, interviews with Linn's sister Jenny seemed to indicate Linn's desire to return to the spotlight again, but Linn still remained hidden from the public. In October and November 2005, the band made appearances at a series of 15 concerts at the Night of the Proms in Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
; as usual, Linn was "unable to attend", and only Jonas, Ulf, and Jenny made appearances at these concerts. During this time, Linn also recorded backing vocals for the track "High Life" in Jenny's secondary band, Arose; the song was released on their debut album in February 2006. In 2006, it was mentioned that Ace of Base had recorded six new songs featuring vocals by both Malin and Jenny. Some of these tracks later surfaced on the 2015 release '' Hidden Gems''.
Departure (2007)
According to an interview given by Ulf Ekberg on 20 June 2006, Malin returned to University to study Judaism
Judaism ( he, ''Yahăḏūṯ'') is an Abrahamic, monotheistic, and ethnic religion comprising the collective religious, cultural, and legal tradition and civilization of the Jewish people. It has its roots as an organized religion in t ...
and would record vocals on the band's new album. However, on 30 November 2007, Ulf stated in an interview that Malin Berggren had left the band and she would not appear on the band's new album. The group had already been performing mostly without Linn as a trio for a solid decade before her departure.[ Interview with Ulf Ekberg in Tallinn, Estonia](_blank)
November 2007. Bandmate and sister Jenny confirmed Linn's departure in the Danish press: "She hasn't been part of Ace of Base for several years," she stated in ''Se & Hør
SE, Se, or Sé may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Sé'' (album), by Lúnasa, 2006
* Se (instrument), a traditional Chinese musical instrument
Businesses and organizations
* Sea Ltd (NYSE: SE), tech conglomerate headquartered in Singapore
...
'' magazine. Ulf remarked: "She has no craving to be famous, she loved her fans, but the fame factor was not for her." The remaining band members promised Linn that they would never ask her to rejoin the band ever again. Linn's image was removed from most material on the band's official website but was reintroduced upon the release of ''Hidden Gems''.
Personal life
Linn is multi-lingual: her primary language is Swedish, but she speaks fluent English and German; she also speaks Spanish, Russian and French. Other details of Linn's life, such as those of her life outside the band, are unknown to the public—whereas the other band members have been open about their relationships (Jonas and Jenny both have spouses, each with children, and Ulf has three children with his long-time girlfriend).["Tour but no album 2007: Swedish newspaper interviews Jonas and Ulf"](_blank)
Ace-News.de 2006 As of 2015, Jonas confirmed he still sees Linn regularly and that she is enjoying a peaceful life with no interest in fame or returning to music.
Contributions to Ace of Base music
Vocals
Linn has contributed vocals for all original Ace of Base songs except:
* Fashion Party (Jenny, Ulf, & Jonas)
* My Mind (Jenny & Ulf)
* Dimension of Depth (instrumental)
* Ravine (Jenny)
* Experience Pearls (Jenny)
* Wave Wet Sand (Jenny)
* Mercy Mercy (Jenny)
* I Pray (Jenny & Ulf)
* Donnie (US version) (Jenny)
* Don't Go Away (Jenny)
* Unspeakable (Jenny)
* Beautiful Morning (Jenny)
* Remember the Words (Jenny)
* World Down Under (Jenny)
* Wonderful Life (Jenny)
* What's The Name of The Game (Jenny)
* Show Me Love (Jenny)
* The Juvenile (Jenny)
Songwriting
Linn's writing credits for Ace of Base tracks:
* Hear Me Calling (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
* Strange Ways
* Whispers In Blindness (the "Dr. X-Ray" credited in this song, and whom Linn thanks in the acknowledgments for ''The Bridge'', was her father, Göran Berggren, who played flute for the song)
* Just N Image
* Lapponia (demo)
* Love in December (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
* Beautiful Morning (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren)
* Change With the Light (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
* What's the Name of the Game (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren, Harry Sommerdahl, and Jonas von der Burg)
* Pole Position (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
* Moment of Magic (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
Song production
Linn's production credits for Ace of Base tracks:
* Strange Ways
* Whispers In Blindness
* Just N Image
* Lapponia
Other
* Performed at Princess Victoria's 20th birthday on 14 July 1997.
References
External links
Ace of Base official website
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berggren, Linn
1970 births
Living people
Ace of Base members
Singers from Gothenburg
Swedish women singers
Swedish pop singers
Chalmers University of Technology alumni
Swedish Christians
English-language singers from Sweden
Swedish contraltos