Lene Marlin (born Lene Marlin Pedersen; 17 August 1980) is a Norwegian musician, singer, and songwriter.
Biography
''Playing My Game'' (1998–2002)
Marlin was born in
Tromsø
Tromsø (, , ; se, Romsa ; fkv, Tromssa; sv, Tromsö) is a municipality in Troms og Finnmark county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tromsø.
Tromsø lies in Northern Norway. The municipality is the 21s ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
. She made her Norwegian recording debut on 12 October 1998, with the single "
Unforgivable Sinner", a number one
hit for eight weeks. It was the fastest selling single in Norwegian music history, and appeared in the soundtrack of the Norwegian movie ''Schpaaa''. Her first album, ''Playing My Game'', followed. She won an
MTV Europe
MTV Global (formerly as MTV Europe) is the international version of the American TV channel MTV, a 24-hour music and entertainment TV channel that began broadcasting on August 1, 1987, as part of the worldwide MTV network.
Initially, MTV serve ...
award in 1999. Her single "
Where I'm Headed", from the French film, ''
Mauvaises fréquentations
''Bad Company'' (original title: ''Mauvaises Fréquentations'') is a 1999 French film starring Maud Forget and Lou Doillon. It is a romantic drama about two young students falling in love. The movie is written by Alain Layrac, and directed by Je ...
'', became a top-5 hit in France and Italy. Her song "
Sitting Down Here
"Sitting Down Here" is a song written by Norwegian singer-songwriter Lene Marlin for Marlin's 1999 debut album, ''Playing My Game''. The song is the album's opening track and was released as its second single in February 1999, peaking at number ...
" became a top-5 hit in the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
, and reached number 5 in the Netherlands in 2000.
''Another Day'' (2003–2004)
Marlin's second album, ''Another Day'', was released on 22 September 2003. Two singles were released: "
You Weren't There
''You Weren't There: A History of Chicago Punk, 1977–1984'' is a 2007 documentary film about punk subculture in Chicago from 1977 through 1984. The film was written and directed by Joe Losurdo and Christina Tillman, and profiles the punk bar ...
" and "Another Day". "You Weren't There" debuted at No. 1 on Norway Singles Top 20 and remained on the chart for 11 weeks. It also stayed for 24 weeks in Italy Singles Top 50 chart, peaking at No. 1. "You Weren't There" was less successful in the UK, reaching #59. The single "Another Day" was released in Italy and Norway only, and peaked at No. 17 on the Italian Singles chart. "Sorry" was released only in Italy.
''Lost in a Moment'' (2005–2007)
In June 2005, Marlin released her third album, ''Lost in a Moment''. The first single from that album, "How Would It Be", was released in Europe in May 2005, and made the Top 20 in both Norway and Italy Singles chart. This single also appeared briefly for a week at a low spot in Germany Singles Top 100. The second single was "What If", released only in Italy.
Despite being less well known in other parts of the world, Marlin made a trip to
Taiwan
Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia, at the junction of the East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocean, with the People's Republic of China (PRC) to the northwest, Japan to the northe ...
and China during October 2005 to promote a Taiwanese version of ''Lost in a Moment''. This included one bonus track, "Still Here", a
cover of a song by a famous
Chinese singer,
Faye Wong
Faye Wong ( zh, 王菲; born Xia Lin on 8 August 1969) is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter. Early in her career she briefly used the stage name Shirley Wong. Born in Beijing, she moved to Hong Kong in 1987 and her debut album ''Shirley Wong'' (1 ...
. The visit proved to be successful; events held included a concert appearance hosted by
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
Taiwan, various television appearances, and a live street gig. Her record company claims that ''Lost in a Moment'' was their best selling western record of the year.
''Twist the Truth'' (2008–present)
In July 2008, the Norwegian press announced that Marlin was in the studio recording her fourth album with Norwegian artists and songwriters Even "Magnet" Johansen and Børge Fjordheim at Askøy, Grand Sports and Malabar Studios.
"Twist the Truth", her fourth album, was released on 30 March 2009. Unlike her previous three albums, the basic sound focuses strongly on an "unplugged" feel in the song performances, close to what a "live in studio" concert would be.
The album has ten tracks. The first single, "Here We Are", was number one on the Norwegian National Radio Chart for two weeks, and was the most airplayed Norwegian song of 2009.
Other work
Lene Marlin has written songs for other artists, including
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to t ...
's "
Good Girl Gone Bad
''Good Girl Gone Bad'' is the third studio album by Barbadian singer Rihanna. It was released on May 31, 2007, by Def Jam Recordings and SRP Records. Rihanna worked with various producers on the album, including Tricky Stewart, The-Dream, Neo ...
" and "Whole New Beginning" and "Picking Up The Pieces" for
Elin Gaustad. She also co-wrote "Yesterday's Gone" with
Frida Amundsen, which was featured on Amundsen's 2012 debut album, ''September Blue''.
In 2006, she performed with Swiss band,
Lovebugs
The lovebug (''Plecia nearctica'') is a species of march fly found in parts of Central America and the southeastern United States, especially along the Gulf Coast. It is also known as the honeymoon fly or double-headed bug. During and after mat ...
on their single "
Avalon
Avalon (; la, Insula Avallonis; cy, Ynys Afallon, Ynys Afallach; kw, Enys Avalow; literally meaning "the isle of fruit r appletrees"; also written ''Avallon'' or ''Avilion'' among various other spellings) is a mythical island featured in th ...
", which made the
Top 10 A top ten list is a list of the ten highest-ranking items of a given category.
Top Ten or Top 10 may also refer to:
Media
*Top 10, a common record chart for the ten most popular songs of the week in the musical chart of a country
*''America's Top ...
in the Swiss
chart as well as topping the Swiss National Airplay Chart.
In 2009, Marlin was featured on
Aleksander Denstad With's single "Worth It" which peaked at No. 3 on Norway Single Chart and earned a Gold Record for single sales in Norway.
In 2011, she worked with
Gary Louris
Gary Louris (born March 10, 1955) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter of alternative country and pop music. He was a founding member of the Minneapolis-based band the Jayhawks and their principal songwriter and vocalist after the ...
,
Autumn Rowe
Autumn Rowe (born May 25, 1981), is an American singer-songwriter, TV personality, DJ and activist from South Bronx, New York, United States. In 2010, she helped write the song "Happiness" by Alexis Jordan, with producers Stargate and Deadmau5, w ...
,
Mads Langer, and Tobias Stenkjaer.
In 2013, Marlin participated in the reality show ''
Hver gang vi møtes'' on
TV2. She also wrote ''Omfavnelsen'' for the Ole Paus' album "Avslutningen".
In September 2014, Marlin wrote an essay for Norway's largest newspaper, ''
Aftenposten
( in the masthead; ; Norwegian for "The Evening Post") is Norway's largest printed newspaper by circulation. It is based in Oslo. It sold 211,769 copies in 2015 (172,029 printed copies according to University of Bergen) and estimated 1.2 millio ...
'', in which she candidly described her lifelong struggles with depression and a suicide attempt due to the pressures of work and fame.
In June 2020, Marlin announced her pregnancy on Instagram with her partner,
Kåre Conradi
Kåre Conradi (born 11 January 1972) is a Norwegian actor.
Conradi was born in Asker and he is a graduate of the Norwegian Theatre Academy and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art. He made his stage debut at Oslo Nye Teater in 1989, was ...
. Their daughter was born in October 2020.
Awards
Marlin has won four awards: Best Pop Solo Artist, Best Single ("Sitting Down Here"), Best Newcomer and the 1999 Artist Of The Year at the
Spellemannprisen
Spellemannprisen, often referred to as the Norwegian Grammy Awards in English, is a Norwegian music award presented to Norwegian musicians. The award was established by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), an organizati ...
, the Norwegian equivalent to the
Grammy
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...
awards, as well as the
MTV Europe
MTV Global (formerly as MTV Europe) is the international version of the American TV channel MTV, a 24-hour music and entertainment TV channel that began broadcasting on August 1, 1987, as part of the worldwide MTV network.
Initially, MTV serve ...
award for Best Nordic Act, presented in
Dublin
Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
, Ireland in November 1999.
Marlin was also nominated for Best International Breakthrough Act at the
2001 BRIT Awards
Brit Awards 2001 was the 21st edition of the annual pop music Brit Awards awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. They are run by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 26 February 2001 at Earls Court in London.
Performances
Winne ...
, alongside
P!nk
Alecia Beth Moore Hart (born September 8, 1979), known professionally as Pink (stylized as P!nk), is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She was originally a member of the girl group Choice. In 1995, LaFace Records saw potential ...
,
Jill Scott Jill Scott may refer to:
* Jill Scott (singer) (born 1972), American soul singer and songwriter.
* Jill Scott (racing driver) (1902–1974), English racing driver
* Jill Scott (media artist) (born 1952), Australian media artist
* Jill Scott (footba ...
,
Westlife
Westlife is an Irish pop vocal group formed in Dublin, Ireland in 1998. The group currently consists of members Shane Filan, Mark Feehily, Kian Egan, and Nicky Byrne. Brian McFadden was a member, until he left in 2004. The group temporari ...
and
Kelis
Kelis Rogers-Mora (; born August 21, 1979), known mononymously as Kelis, is an American singer, songwriter and a professionally trained chef. At age 14, she was admitted to New York's Fiorello H. LaGuardia High School of Music & Art and Perfor ...
, losing to Kelis.
Discography
* ''
Playing My Game'' (1999)
* ''
Another Day'' (2003)
* ''
Lost in a Moment'' (2005)
* ''
Twist the Truth'' (2009)
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marlin, Lene
1980 births
Living people
English-language singers from Norway
Norwegian country singers
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Musicians from Tromsø
Norwegian pop musicians
Norwegian singer-songwriters
Spellemannprisen winners
21st-century Norwegian singers
21st-century Norwegian women singers