Sigurjón Brink (29 August 1974 – 17 January 2011), better known as Sjonni Brink or just the mononym Sjonni, was an

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

ic musician and singer. He was one of the founders of the Icelandic theatre group

Vesturport Vesturport is an Icelandic theatre group, founded on 18 August 2001. The group has performed plays in the United States, Europe and Australia. In 2011, it received the Europe Prize Theatrical Realities for its complete work, innovative charac ...

, which received the honourable

Europe Theatre Prize The Europe Theatre Prize ''(Premio Europa per il Teatro)'' is an award of the European Commission for a personality who has "contributed to the realisation of cultural events that promote understanding and the exchange of knowledge between peo ...

in St. Petersburg.

Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins

Earlier competitions

Sjonni was a household name in Iceland and participated in Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins the Icelandic national selection show for the

Eurovision Song Contest The Eurovision Song Contest (), sometimes abbreviated to ESC and often known simply as Eurovision, is an international songwriting competition organised annually by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), featuring participants representing pr ...

three times: *

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

with "Hjartaþrá" *

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

with "Áfram" *

2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...

with "You Knocked Upon My Door" and "Waterslide",

2011 competition

Sjonni would have also participated in Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2011, with "

Aftur Heim "Coming Home" ( is, "Aftur heim") is the Icelandic entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2011. It was performed by the tribute band Sjonni's Friends ( is, Vinir Sjonna, link=no), made up of musicians Hreimur Örn Heimisson, Gunnar Ólason, Benedi ...

", but died before the first performance in the third semi-final. Sigurjón Brink had composed the music himself, with lyrics by his wife

Þórunn Erna Clausen Þórunn Erna Clausen (born 12 September 1975) is an Icelandic actress and songwriter. Clausen is the daughter of Olympic athlete and dentist Haukur Clausen. She studied drama at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London and graduated ...

. Sigurjón's family decided, on reflection that they would like for the song to remain in the competition, that it should be performed by

Sjonni's Friends Sjonni's Friends ( is, Vinir Sjonna) were an Icelandic tribute band also known at times as Sigurjón's Friends. The band formed in early 2011 when the Icelandic singer Sjonni Brink (real name Sigurjón Brink) died just days before he was to perfo ...

, a tribute band consisting of Sjonni's real life musician friends Hreimur Örn Heimisson, Gunnar Ólason, Benedikt Brynleifsson, Vignir Snær Vigfússon, Matthías Matthíasson and Pálmi Sigurhjartarson. The formation won the Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2011, and the whole nation joined together in grief for Sjonni's premature death. The group Sjonni's Friends (in Icelandic Vinir Sjonna) won the right to represent Iceland in the

Eurovision Song Contest 2011 The Eurovision Song Contest 2011 was the 56th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Düsseldorf, Germany, following the country's victory at the with the song "Satellite" by Lena. Organised by the European Broadcasting Union ...

. The actual Eurovision competition was held in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf ( , , ; often in English sources; Low Franconian and Ripuarian: ''Düsseldörp'' ; archaic nl, Dusseldorp ) is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in th ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in May 2011 where the formation Sjonni's Friends sang it with amended English lyrics as "Coming Home". It came 20th overall during the final of the competition after receiving 61 points.

Death

During the evening of 17 January, Sigurjón died at his home in

Garðabær Garðabær () is a municipality in the Capital Region of Iceland. History Garðabær is a growing town in the Capital Region. It is the sixth largest town in Iceland with a population of 13,872 (Sept 1, 2013). The site of Garðabær has been inha ...

in Iceland, after suffering a stroke. He left behind his wife and four children. His son, Aron Brink, competed in the Icelandic national final, Söngvakeppni 2017, with his song "Hypnotized" and finished fourth.

Discography

Singles

*2006: "Hjartaþrá'' (ISL #4) *2007: "Áfram" *2007: "La Bamba" (ISL #7) *2008: "Flökkuhjartað" *2008: "Brosið þitt lýsir mér leið" *2010: "You Knocked Upon My Door" *2010: "Waterslide"

Discography (after death)

Albums

*2011: ''Sjonni Brink'' *2004: Flavors, Go your own way. *1995: with his band In Bloom.

Singles

;as Sjonni's Friends (sometimes aka Sigurjón's Friends) *2011: "

Aftur heim "Coming Home" ( is, "Aftur heim") is the Icelandic entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2011. It was performed by the tribute band Sjonni's Friends ( is, Vinir Sjonna, link=no), made up of musicians Hreimur Örn Heimisson, Gunnar Ólason, Benedi ...

" (ISL #1) **2011: "Coming Home" (English version of "Aftur heim" as sung during

) *2011 : Reality (recorded in the summer of 2010 and released after his death, included on the Sjonni's Friends Eurovision cd.) ;as Þórunn Erna Clausen & Sjonni Brink *2013: Days Gone By"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brink, Sigurjon 1974 births 2011 deaths 21st-century Icelandic male singers People from Garðabær English-language singers from Iceland Deaths in Iceland