Nana Ann-Helene Hedin Pranschke, known as Nana Hedin and also known as Na Na and Nana d'Aquini (born May 24, 1968 in

Eskilstuna Eskilstuna () is a city and the seat of Eskilstuna Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden. The city of Eskilstuna had 67,359 inhabitants in 2015, with a total population of 100,092 inhabitants in Eskilstuna municipality (2014). Eskilstuna has ...

Södermanland Södermanland ( or ), locally Sörmland, sometimes referred to under its Latin form ''Sudermannia'' or ''Sudermania'', is a historical province or ''landskap'' on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanla ...

, Sweden), is a Swedish singer.

Career

NaNa Hedin started her career in the late 1980s, and worked primarily at the

Cheiron Studios Cheiron Studios () was a recording studio located in the Kungsholmen district of Stockholm, Sweden. Founded in 1992 by Denniz PoP and Tom Talomaa, it was famous for being the place where popular music acts of the late 1990s/early 2000s such a ...

in Stockholm along with the

Cheiron In Greek mythology, Chiron ( ; also Cheiron or Kheiron; ) was held to be the superlative centaur amongst his brethren since he was called the "wisest and justest of all the centaurs". Biography Chiron was notable throughout Greek mythology ...

producers

Denniz Pop Dag Krister Volle (26 April 1963 – 30 August 1998), better known as Denniz Pop (stylized ''Denniz PoP''), was a Swedish DJ, music producer, and songwriter. He co-founded the recording studio Cheiron Studios in Stockholm in 1992. Life and car ...

Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com known profess ...

Kristian Lundin Kristian Lundin (born 7 May 1973) is a Swedish composer, music producer and songwriter. Biography Kristian's worked on the song " Quit Playing Games (with My Heart)" which he co-produced with Max Martin for the Backstreet Boys. He co-wrote & pro ...

, etc. She recorded backup vocals for many artists such as

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...

Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the British pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, havi ...

, Ace of Base,

Aqua Aqua is the Latin word for water. It is used in many words which relate to water, such as aquatic life. In English, it may also refer to: Arts * Aqua (color), a greenish-blue color Business * Aqua (skyscraper), an 82-story residential skysc ...

, and many others. Hedin also recorded lead vocals for other Swedish artists such as

Dr. Alban Alban Uzoma Nwapa (born 26 August 1957), better known by his stage name Dr. Alban, is a Nigerian- Swedish recording artist and producer with his own record label, Dr. Records. His music can best be described as Eurodance/ hip-hop reggae in a d ...

Look Who's Talking ''Look Who's Talking'' is a 1989 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Amy Heckerling, and starring John Travolta and Kirstie Alley. Bruce Willis plays the voice of Mollie's son, Mikey. The film features George Segal as Albert ...

"), Stakka Bo (" Here We Go" and the whole ''Supermarket'' album released in 1993), Amadin ("Alrabaiye") or Flexx ("Wake Up"). In 2000, Hedin released her own single "Fame 2000" as NaNa D'Aquini under the Danish label Merlin / Playground Scandinavia. It was a cover and remix of the 1980s hit " Fame" by

Irene Cara Irene Cara Escalera (March 18, 1959 – November 25, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter and actress of Black, Puerto Rican and Cuban descent. Cara rose to prominence for her role as Coco Hernandez in the 1980 musical film '' Fame'', and f ...

. A music video was shot in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

and the song was remixed by several DJs worldwide. In 2005, she entered

Melodifestivalen 2005 Melodifestivalen 2005 was the selection for the 45th song to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the 44th time that this system of picking a song had been used. Five heats had taken place to select the ten songs for the final, ...

with the song "Wherever You Go". Hedin also performed as a 'Primadonna' in theaters and tours between 1993 and 2003 with Swedish stand-up comedian/author

Jonas Gardell Lars Jonas Holger Gardell (born 2 November 1963) is a Swedish novelist, playwright, screenwriter and comedian. He is the brother of religion scholar Mattias Gardell. He is well known for his books and plays in all of Scandinavia and his books h ...

With E-Type

Hedin is mostly known for singing the chorus on most of E-Type's albums between 1994 and 2004, including the hits Set the World on Fire (1994), This Is the Way (1994),

Angels Crying "Angels Crying" is a song by Swedish musician Bo Martin Erik Erikson, known under the pseudonym of E-Type, released in 1998 as the first single from his third album, '' Last Man Standing'' (1998). It features vocals by singer Nana Hedin and percu ...

(1998),

Here I Go Again "Here I Go Again" is a song by British rock band Whitesnake. Originally released on their 1982 album, '' Saints & Sinners'', the power ballad was re-recorded for their 1987 self-titled album. The song was re-recorded again the same year in a ...

(1998), and many more. Their last collaboration was for the song

Paradise In religion, paradise is a place of exceptional happiness and delight. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical or eschatological or both, often compared to the miseries of human civilization: in paradis ...

in 2004, which was used to enter

Melodifestivalen 2004 Melodifestivalen 2004 was the selection for the 44th song to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the 43rd time that this system of picking a song had been used. Five heats had taken place to select the ten songs for the final, ...

. Most of the time, Dilnarin "Dee" Demirbag was on stage and in music videos with E-Type, lip-synching to Hedin's voice. Hedin can be seen in the music videos of "Set the World on Fire" (both versions), "Life" and "Paradise".

Notable TV appearances

Besides the Melodifestivalen appearances in 2004 and 2005, Hedin opened the Swedish Sport Awards in 2007 by singing

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philo ...

The Great Gig in the Sky "The Great Gig in the Sky" is the fifth track on '' The Dark Side of the Moon'', the 1973 album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd. The song features music by Richard Wright and non-lexical vocals by Clare Torry, being one of only ...

, in front of the Swedish King

Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden Carl XVI Gustaf (Carl Gustaf Folke Hubertus; born 30 April 1946) is King of Sweden. He ascended the throne on the death of his grandfather, Gustaf VI Adolf, on 15 September 1973. He is the youngest child and only son of Prince Gustaf Adolf, D ...

. It was aired live on SVT from the

Globen Arena Avicii Arena, originally known as Stockholm Globe Arena and previously as Ericsson Globe, but commonly referred to in Swedish simply as Globen (; "the Globe"), is an indoor arena located in Stockholm Globe City, Johanneshov district of Stockh ...

. In September 2007, Hedin participated in the musical game show

Doobidoo ''Doobidoo'' is a Swedish musical game show first aired on 26 August 2005 on the public service network SVT. There is also a Polish, TVP2, version called ''Dubidu'' - show host Piotr Gasowski - and an Australian version that goes by ''You may ...

on SVT, and paired up with

Janne Carlsson Jan Edvard Carlsson (12 March 1937 – 31 August 2017), known professionally as Janne 'Loffe' Carlsson, was a Swedish actor, musician, composer and artist. Early life Carlsson was born on 12 March 1937 in Katarina Parish, Stockholm, the son of ...

against Ingela "Pling" Forsman & Jan Johansen. She performed

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

Little Wing "Little Wing" is a song written by Jimi Hendrix and recorded by the Jimi Hendrix Experience in 1967. It is a slower tempo, rhythm and blues-inspired ballad featuring Hendrix's vocal and guitar with recording studio effects accompanied by bass, d ...

, with Carlsson on the drums. On May 2, 2008, Hedin participated in the music program

Så ska det låta ''Så ska det låta'' is a 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 al ...

. She paired up with Fred Johansson against

Sarah Dawn Finer Sarah Dawn Finer (born 14 September 1981) is a Swedish singer, songwriter and actress. Her father is of English heritage from the United Kingdom, her mother is Jewish from the United States, and she was born and raised in Sweden. As a student, s ...

and Patrik Isaksson.

Awards

On June 6, 2018, Hedin received the ''MVP (Most Valuable Person) Award'' at the

Denniz PoP Dag Krister Volle (26 April 1963 – 30 August 1998), better known as Denniz Pop (stylized ''Denniz PoP''), was a Swedish DJ, music producer, and songwriter. He co-founded the recording studio Cheiron Studios in Stockholm in 1992. Life and car ...

Awards by a jury consisting of major producers and artists such as Carly Rae Jepsen,

Tove Lo Ebba Tove Elsa Nilsson (born 29 October 1987), known professionally as Tove Lo (), is a Swedish singer and songwriter. She has been called "Sweden's darkest pop export" by ''Rolling Stone.'' She is known for her raw, grunge-influenced take o ...

Rami Yacoub Rami Yacoub (born 17 January 1975), also known by the mononym Rami, is a Swedish record producer and songwriter and former member of the songwriting/production houses Cheiron Studios and Maratone. Yacoub collaborated extensively with Max Martin ...

and

Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com known profess ...

. Fans from all over the world voted for her, and she was picked for her behind-the-scenes contribution, helping to form the classic

sound. Producer and jury member Jacob Schulze says "Without Nana, the Cheiron sound wouldn't have sounded like it did. She's been an invaluable part of the Cheiron story and deserves this prize more than anyone else."

Cancer

In August 2009, Hedin was diagnosed with

Tongue cancer Oral cancer, also known as mouth cancer, is cancer of the lining of the lips, mouth, or upper throat. In the mouth, it most commonly starts as a painless white patch, that thickens, develops red patches, an ulcer, and continues to grow. When on ...

after being wrongly diagnosed by several specialist in 2008. The tumor was in stage 4 when rightly diagnosed and Hedin finally got help. The tumor was life threatening at that time, she did survive but due to the massive radiotherapy treatment the singer was given, she has not performed ever since. In 2014, she started suffering from

Osteoradionecrosis Osteoradionecrosis (ORN) is a serious complication of radiation therapy in cancer treatment where radiated bone becomes necrotic and exposed. ORN occurs most commonly in the mouth during the treatment of head and neck cancer, and can arise over 5 y ...

, jawbone death, because of the radiotherapy. The Swedish surgeons said that they would have to resect the complete mandible and that she would never be able to sing again. Hedin started a world wide search for second opinions to try and find a better surgery to save her voice. In 2022 M.A.S- a Swedish non-profit organization started a fundraiser on GoFundMe named "Save NaNa's Voice 2022" in order to finance Hedins journey to India for reconstructive jaw surgery. Hedins fans all over the world helped to donate and the fundraising is on going.

Discography

* ''FAME 2000'' (single) * ''It's Raining Men'' (2004) (single) * ''Wherever You Go'' (2005) (single)

Featurings

Five 5 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 5, five or number 5 may also refer to: * AD 5, the fifth year of the AD era * 5 BC, the fifth year before the AD era Literature * ''5'' (visual novel), a 2008 visual novel by Ram * ''5'' (comics), an awa ...

** '' Slam Dunk Da Funk'' ** ''

1998 *

A*Teens A-Teens (stylized as A★TEENS or A*Teens) were a Swedish pop music group from Stockholm, Sweden, formed by Niklas Berg in 1998 originally as an ABBA tribute band called ABBA-Teens and was later renamed A-Teens. The band members were Marie Serne ...

** ''Half Way Around the World'' 2001 * Ace of Base ** ''Flowers'' (album) 1998 ** ''Life is a Flower'' * Amadin ** ''Take Me Up (Alrabaiye)'' 1993 * Ardis Fagerholm ** ''Love Addict'' (album) 1994 *

** ''Aquarius'' (album) 2000 ** ''Cartoon Heroes'' 2000 ** ''Around The World'' 2000 ** ''We Belong to the Sea'' 2000 ** ''Back From Mars'' ** ''Freaky Friday'' ** ''Good Guys'' ** ''Goodbye to the Circus '' ** ''Halloween'' *

** ''Baby One More Time'' ** ''Oops!...I Did It Again'' ** ''(You Drive Me) Crazy'' ** ''Born to Make You Happy'' ** ''Stronger'' ** ''Bombastic Love'' ** ''Don't Go Knockin' On My Door'' ** ''Baby One More Time'' (album) 1999 ** ''Oops!...I Did It Again'' (album) 2000 ** ''Britney'' (album) 2001 *

Céline Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

** ''That's The Way It Is'' ** ''I'm Alive'' ** ''New Day Has Come'' (album) 2002 ** ''One Heart'' (album) 2003 ** ''On ne change pas'' 2005 ** ''The Greatest Reward'' ** ''Coulda Woulda Shoulda'' ** ''Tous Les Secrets'' *

Dana Dragomir Dana Dragomir (; born 22 July 1964) is a Swedish pan flute musician and composer of Romanian origin. She is also known under the name Pandana (combination between the Greek god Pan and her name). Dana Dragomir is best known for her interpretati ...

** ''PanDana'' (album) 1995 *

DJ Bobo Peter René Baumann (born 5 January 1968), better known under his stage name DJ BoBo, is a Swiss singer-songwriter, rapper, dancer, and music producer. He has sold 14 million records worldwide and has released 12 studio albums as well as several ...

** ''World in Motion'' (album) 1996 ** ''For Now And Forever'' *

** ''Look Who's Talking'' 1994 ** ''Away From Home'' 1994 ** ''Let The Beat Go On'' 1994 * E-Type ** ''Made in Sweden'' (album) 1994 *** ''Do You Always'' *** ''Me No Want Miseria'' *** ''Set the World on Fire'' *** ''This is the Way'' *** ''Fight It Back'' *** ''Until the End'' *** ''Will I See You Again'' ** ''The Explorer'' (album) 1996 *** ''Calling Your Name'' *** ''Back in the Loop'' *** ''I Just Wanna Be With You'' *** ''Free Like a Flying Demon'' *** ''Forever Wild'' *** ''I'm Not Alone'' ** ''Last Man Standing'' (album) 1998 *** ''Angels Crying'' *** ''Here I Go Again'' *** ''Hold Your Horses'' *** ''I'm Flying'' *** ''Morning Light'' *** ''I'll Find A Way'' *** ''So Far Away'' ** ''Euro IV Ever'' (album) 2001 *** ''Life'' *** ''Africa'' *** ''Arabian Star'' *** ''When I Close My Eyes'' *** ''Time'' *** ''No More Tears'' ** ''Loud Pipes Save Lives'' (album) 2004 *** ''Paradise'' *** ''Far Up in the Air'' *** ''Forever More'' *

Elephant & Castle The Elephant and Castle is an area around a major road junction in London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark. The name also informally refers to much of Walworth and Newington, due to the proximity of the London Underground stati ...

** ''DJ Keep This Feeling'' * Flexx ** ''Wake Up'' 1993 * Garou **''Piece'' of my soul ( album ) 2008 **Back for more *

** ''SuperHero'' ** ''For All That You Want'' ** ''Twelve Months Eleven Days'' (album) *

Herbie Herbie, the Love Bug is a fictional sentient 1963 Volkswagen Beetle, who has been featured in several Walt Disney motion pictures starting with the 1968 feature film ''The Love Bug''. He has a mind of his own and is capable of driving himself, ...

** ''I Believe'' 1995 *

Papa Dee David Christopher Daniel Wahlgren (born 13 July 1966), better known by the stage name Papa Dee, is a Sweden, Swedish Rapping, rapper. His most commercially successful track is his version of the Cat Stevens song "The First Cut Is the Deepest#Papa ...

** ''First Cut is The Deepest'' ** ''Just Let the Music'' ** ''The Journey'' (album) 1995 ** ''The Tide is High'' *

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

& Friends ** ''Pavarotti & Friends for Cambodia & Tibet'' * Safe ** ''Love is All We Need'' 1995 * Stakka Bo ** ''Down the Drain'' 1993 ** ''Here We Go'' 1993 ** ''Living it Up'' ** ''Supermarket'' (album) 1993

External links

Official website
*

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hedin, Nana 1968 births Living people People from Eskilstuna Swedish women singers