‘There will always be some melancholy to me’: ‘Music’s saddest girl from Sweden’, singer-songwriter Tove Lo

Tove Lo’s newest single Glad He’s Gone is an oxymoron of sorts. It’s a break-up song that the artiste says sets the tone for a sunnier side to her. The singer-songwriter has been called the darkest pop export from Sweden as her music is laced with grunge sound and complex lyricism. Point that out to her and she laughs, “Yeah, I like that description. It sounds cool!” However, she tells us that her upcoming record, Sunshine Kitty, does not quite fall into that category. She is more playful and not as nervous to use her voice in good as well as ugly ways. Excerpts from a chat with the multi-platinum, Grammy-nominated (Love Me like You Do with Ellie Goulding) artiste... 

Glad He’s Gone is a pep talk to a girlfriend going through a break-up. Do your friends turn to you when dealing with heartbreak?

Yeah, they do! But now, of course, it’s difficult to get a hold of me because I’m always all over the world. But I feel people in general turn to me when it comes to getting something off their chest or just to get advice because I’m pretty good at it... though I may not follow them myself (laughs). 

Relationships are really interesting — how we treat each other when we are in love. It makes everything a lot more intense. 

Sunshine Kitty is meant to have happier numbers with some club bangers after you’ve been called music’s ‘saddest girl from Sweden’...

Yes. That’s where I am at the moment and it will come out in the record. But there will always be some melancholy to me and how I write. That’s because I feel even if you are in love and really happy, there’s always a little bit of fear of losing it. I think you can’t feel all of the good without feeling some of the bad.

This is your fourth studio album after Queen of the Clouds (2014), Lady Wood (2016) and Blue Lips (2017). How do you see your growth as a musician?

I think I have gone from naïve to experienced. I dare to experiment a bit more. I’m also less pretentious and more playful. There’s also growth in my play with words. My vocabulary is bigger (English is my second language) but I have heard a lot more music, so it’s better now.

Tove Lo

How did you deal with undergoing a vocal surgery during the time of Lady Wood?

I hit a pause after opening for Katy Perry in Australia and underwent the surgery. I was at home for two months before entering the studio again. It was hard at first because my voice wasn’t what it used to be. I didn’t know where I was at when it came to singing the kind of melodies I could. The challenge made the experience more fun but there were also times where I missed knowing my voice. But I’ve felt comfortable with my voice for a while now.

What was it like to collaborate with Nick Jonas on Close, which proved to be a platinum hit?

It was amazing. We both got to know each other just by being signed on the same label. We did the Jingle Bell tour together and he asked me to be on one of his songs. He is really ambitious and talented. His drive, as well as discipline, are really inspiring.

Who are your favourite pop artistes these days?

I’m a big admirer of Billie Eilish; she is completely in her own lane and doing her own thing, speaking to a new generation. Only she knows what she is doing and no one can mimic it. She is setting the bar high in a different way.

Any plans of touring India?

Nothing today but I’ve never been there and it’s been on my bucket list for a really long time. So, fingers crossed.

Any more cool collabs one can look forward to like the ones with Ellie Goulding and Lorde’s Homemade Dynamite?

Nothing as of now, except for the ones on my album. But I’m always doing something fun and jumping on to things with other collaborators — so, hopefully, yes!