Ann-Kristin "Kikki" Danielsson (born 10 May 1952) is a Swedish

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whil ...

dansband (; "dance band"), or in Norwegian and Danish, is a Swedish term for a band that plays ("dance band music"). ' is often danced to in pairs. Jitterbug and foxtrot music are often included in this category. The music is primarily inspired ...

and pop singer. Sometimes, she also plays the accordion and she has also written some lyrics. She has gained notice for

yodeling Yodeling (also jodeling) is a form of singing which involves repeated and rapid changes of pitch between the low-pitch chest register (or "chest voice") and the high-pitch head register or falsetto. The English word ''yodel'' is derived from th ...

in some songs. Danielsson gained her largest popularity in the

Nordic region The Nordic countries (also known as the Nordics or ''Norden''; lit. 'the North') are a geographical and cultural region in Northern Europe and the North Atlantic. It includes the sovereign states of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and S ...

from the late 1970s until the late 1990s. She also gained popularity at the US country stage during the 1980s. In 1986, she had the "Kikki i Nashville" TV show.

Life and work

Danielsson was born in

Osby Osby () is a locality and the seat of Osby Municipality, Scania County, Sweden with 7,157 inhabitants in 2010. Swedish ice hockey goaltender Magnus Åkerlund was born in Osby. The toy manufacturer BRIO was based in Osby, but moved to Malmö ...

, Sweden, and resides in Gävleborg. In total, she has participated nine times at the Swedish

Melodifestivalen Melodifestivalen (; literally "the Melody Festival") is an annual song competition organised by Swedish public broadcasters Sveriges Television (SVT) and Sveriges Radio (SR). It determines the country's representative for the Eurovision Son ...

and one time at the Norwegian

Melodi Grand Prix Melodi Grand Prix (), commonly known as Grand Prix and MGP, sometimes as Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix ( no, Norsk Melodi Grand Prix), is an annual music competition organised by Norwegian public broadcaster Norsk Rikskringkasting (NRK). It det ...

. She has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest twice, in

1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C., Un ...

(as a part of the Swedish pop and country group

Chips ''CHiPs'' is an American crime drama television series created by Rick Rosner and originally aired on NBC from September 15, 1977, to May 1, 1983. It follows the lives of two motorcycle officers of the California Highway Patrol (CHP). The seri ...

with the song "

Dag efter dag "Dag efter dag" (; "Day after day") is a song in Swedish, with melody by Lasse Holm and text by Monica Forsberg. The pop and country group Chips (Kikki Danielsson and Elisabeth Andreassen) won the Swedish Melodifestivalen 1982 with it. Chips, as ...

", finishing 8th) and in the

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

(solo) with the song " Bra vibrationer", finishing 3rd. Kikki Danielsson was born in Osby, but was

adopted Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting of another, usually a child, from that person's biological or legal parent or parents. Legal adoptions permanently transfer all rights and responsibilities, along with filiation, from ...

and lived on a farm in

Älmhult Älmhult () is a locality and the seat of Älmhult Municipality in Kronoberg County, Sweden with 8,955 inhabitants in 2010. It was in Älmhult that the first IKEA (the Swedish furniture company) store was built. IKEA continues to have a large ...

Småland Småland () is a historical province () in southern Sweden. Småland borders Blekinge, Scania, Halland, Västergötland, Östergötland and the island Öland in the Baltic Sea. The name Småland literally means ''Small Lands''. The Latinized ...

from the age of five. There, she became the only child in the family while her younger sister was adopted to another place. As a five-year-old girl, Kikki Danielsson made her first singing performance, which occurred at the local

Sunday school A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. S ...

Lucia Lucia may refer to: Arts and culture * ''Lucía'', a 1968 Cuban film by Humberto Solás * ''Lucia'' (film), a 2013 Kannada-language film * '' Lucia & The Best Boys'', a Scottish indie rock band formerly known as ''LUCIA'' * "Lucia", a Swedish c ...

party in her Småland home church, singing the Christmas song "När Jesusbarnet låg en gång". As a child, she sang in the local church choir. As a 17-year-old girl, Kikki Danielsson begun as a singer in dansband Nickies and in 1973 she switched to another

Wizex Wizex is a Swedish dansband formed in Osby in 1973. It purchased the rights to the name from a band that started as ''Ulrik Wittmans Kvintett'' in 1957''.'' When Ulrik Wittman left the band in 1963 they started to use the name ''Wizex''. When rea ...

, with which she participated at the Swedish

Melodifestivalen 1978 For the Eurovision Song Contest 1978, Sweden held a national final called Melodifestivalen 1978. The winner and representative was "Det blir alltid värre framåt natten", sung by Björn Skifs, and written and composed by Peter Himmelstrand. ...

. She left Wizex in 1982, but as a member of the pop and country group

, she participated at the Swedish Melodifestivalen 1980,

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major off ...

and

. She has also been a popular

Svensktoppen ''Svensktoppen'' () is a weekly record chart airing at Sveriges Radio. Until January 2003, the songs had to be in the Swedish language. Svensktoppen has aired since 1962, except for the years 1982-1985. The last years before the January 2003 ch ...

artist, with hits as the Melodifestivalen songs, but also other songs, like " Papaya Coconut" in 1987. She willingly sings country and has contributed in radio and TV shows in the US in the 1980s. During the second half of 1984, she married Swedish musician Kjell Roos, who led the dansband Roosarna, with which she sang between 1990 and 1999. In 1985 she gave birth to their first child. In late 1987 she released the

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

album "

Min barndoms jular ''Min barndoms jular'' is a Christmas album from Kikki Danielsson, released in December 1987. It peaked at 19th position at the Swedish Albums Chart Album release Years later, incorrect sources begun to state that the album was released on Novem ...

". Together with Roosarna, she had many

hits during the 1990s. In 1994, the "dansband of the year" prize at the

Grammis The Grammis are music awards presented annually to musicians and songwriters in Sweden. The oldest Swedish music awards, they were instituted as a local equivalent of the Grammy Awards given in the United States. The awards ceremony is general ...

was awarded to Kikki Danielsson & Roosarna. In 1999 she separated from Kjell Roos. However, the musical co-operation restarted in 2003. Kikki Danielsson has also sung at the 2001

Stockholm Pride Stockholm Pride (styled as STHLM Pride) is an annual gay pride festival held in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden. Since the start in 1998, Stockholm Pride has grown. In 2014, some 60,000 participated and 600,000 followed the parade at the street ...

. Together with

Elisabeth Andreassen Elisabeth Gunilla Andreassen (; born 28 March 1958), also known as just Bettan, is a Norwegian-Swedish singer who has finished both first and second in the Eurovision Song Contest. Career Her talent was discovered in 1979 by Swedish musician and ...

and

Lotta Engberg Anna Charlotte "Lotta" Engberg (born Pedersen; 5 March 1963) is a Swedish singer. She represented Sweden in Eurovision Song Contest 1987 with "Boogaloo" after winning Melodifestivalen 1987. She also tried many times in Melodifestivalen in 198 ...

she participated at the Swedish

Melodifestivalen 2002 Melodifestivalen 2002 was the selection for the 42nd song to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the 41st time that this system of picking a song had been used. Five heats had taken place to select the ten songs for the fin ...

and together they called themselves Kikki, Bettan & Lotta and had an own dinner show during the second half of 2002 and participated at the Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix in 2003. They also started a successful collaboration with the Swedish brand "twilfit" designing stretchy yet fashionable T-shirts. Kikki Danielsson participated at

Melodifestivalen 2006 Melodifestivalen 2006 was the selection for the 46th song to represent Sweden at the Eurovision Song Contest. It was the 45th time that this system of picking a song had been used. Five heats had taken place to select the ten songs for the final ...

, which is the Swedish qualifications for the Eurovision Song Contest. She performed with the song "

I dag & i morgon ''I dag & i morgon'' was released on April 12, 2006, and is a compilation album from Swedish pop and country singer Kikki Danielsson. The album also contains four new-released recordings: " Yesterday Once More", " Looking for Freedom", "Blue Virgi ...

", written by Thomas G:son and Calle Kindbom, which reached the final in the

Stockholm Globe 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 Stockho ...

, where it finished at the 10th and last place. Totally, she has participated nine times at the Swedish Melodifestivalen and one time at Norwegian Melodi Grand Prix. In 2018, she participated in

once again. From 28 November to 17 December 2006, she toured Sweden with a band on the "Julstämning med Kikki" Christmas concert tour. Her periods of problems with alcohol have been a popular topic of the Scandinavian press (Danielsson first started drinking heavily to self-medicate as a result of her

rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a long-term autoimmune disorder that primarily affects synovial joint, joints. It typically results in warm, swollen, and painful joints. Pain and stiffness often worsen following rest. Most commonly, the wrist and ...

), as has her weight problem, in which she has become obese. Because of her weight problem, she appeared in ''Du är vad du äter'', the Swedish version of "

You Are What You Eat ''You Are What You Eat'' is a British dieting programme presented by Trisha Goddard and Amir Khan that broadcasts on Channel 5. The show was originally broadcast on Channel 4, before moving to Channel 5 in 2022 for its revived series. Both ...

", in 2006 where she made great progress and lost several pounds. In January 2010, it was announced that Kikki Danielsson together with Sören "Sulo" Karlsson and The Diamond Dogs would record the single ''Maybe I'll Do'', and on 13 July 2010 she appeared at

Allsång på Skansen ''Allsång på Skansen'' (''Sing-along at Skansen'') is a Swedish show held at Skansen, Stockholm, every summer on Tuesdays between 8pm and 9pm. The audience is encouraged to sing along with musical guest stars to well-known Swedish and internati ...

. On 13 April 2011 she released the album ''

Första dagen på resten av mitt liv ''Första dagen på resten av mitt liv'' (English: "First day of the rest of my life") is a 2011 studio album by Swedish singer Kikki Danielsson. Although Danielson continued recording studio albums with Roosarna during the 1990s, the album was the ...

'', where she worked together with Sören "Sulo" Karlsson. In 2012, Danielsson starred in the film '' Sean Banan inuti Seanafrika''. In 2017, she participated in the eighth season of ''

Så mycket bättre Så mycket bättre (, "So Much Better") is a Swedish reality television show that airs on TV4. The basic premise is that each artist attempts to do their own version of another artist's well-known songs, with each person getting an episode featu ...

'' ( TV4). Kikki Danielsson performed again at

on 3 February 2018, this time with the song "Osby Tennessee", which ended up seventh and last in the semi-final following votings. In February 2020, Kikki Danielsson was elected into the Melodifestivalen Hall of Fame.

Melodifestivalen, Melodi Grand Prix and Eurovision entries

: '' Miss Decibel'' (with

) – 2nd place * Melodifestivalen 1980: '' Mycke' mycke' mer'' (with

) – 4th place * Melodifestivalen 1981: '' God morgon'' (with Sweets 'n Chips) – 2nd place * Melodifestivalen 1982: ''

'' (with

) – winner :8th place at the

Eurovision Song Contest 1982 The Eurovision Song Contest 1982 was the 27th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Harrogate, United Kingdom, following the country's victory at the with the song " Making Your Mind Up" by Bucks Fizz. Organised by t ...

Melodifestivalen 1983 Sweden used a national preselction called ''Melodifestivalen 1983'' to select an entry for the 28th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. Winner, being the first participant ever to get maximum points from all of the eleven juries, was the 17- ...

: '' Varför är kärleken röd?'' – 2nd place * Melodifestivalen 1985: '' Bra vibrationer'' – winner :3rd place at the

Eurovision Song Contest 1985 The Eurovision Song Contest 1985 was the 30th edition of the annual Eurovision Song Contest. It took place in Gothenburg, Sweden, following the country's victory at the with the song " Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley" by Herreys. Organised by the Euro ...

* Melodifestivalen 1992: ''En enda gång'' – 4th place *

: '' Vem é dé du vill ha'' ( Kikki, Bettan & Lotta) – 3rd place *

2003: ''Din hand i min hand'' ( Kikki, Bettan & Lotta) – 4th place *

: ''

'' – 10th place *

Melodifestivalen 2018 Melodifestivalen 2018 was the 58th edition of the Swedish music competition Melodifestivalen, which selected Sweden's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2018. The competition was organised by Sveriges Television (SVT) and took place over a six ...

: ''Osby Tennessee'' – semi-finalist

Solo discography

Studio albums

*1979: '' Rock'n Yodel'' *1981: ''

Just Like a Woman "Just Like a Woman" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bob Dylan first released on his seventh studio album, ''Blonde on Blonde'' on June 20, 1966. It was written by Dylan and produced by Bob Johnston. A shorter edit was released as a singl ...

'' *1982: '' Kikki'' *1983: '' Singles Bar'' *1984: '' Midnight Sunshine'' *1985: '' Bra vibrationer'' *1986: '' Papaya Coconut'' *1987: ''

'' (Christmas album) *1989: '' Canzone d'Amore'' (1989) *1991: '' Vägen hem till dej'' *1992: '' Jag ska aldrig lämna dig'' *2001: '' Nu är det advent'' (Christmas album) *2011: ''

'' *2015: ''

Postcard from a Painted Lady ''Postcard from a Painted Lady'' is a studio album by Kikki Danielsson, released on 25 September 2015. Professional reviews ''Aftonbladet''s Håkan Steen gave the album three stars out of five possible. Track listing Contributors *Kikki Daniel ...

'' *2016: '' Christmas Card from a Painted Lady'' (Christmas album) *2017: '' Portrait of a Painted Lady''

Compilation albums

*1983: '' Varför är kärleken röd?'' *1984: '' Kikkis 15 bästa låtar'' *1990: '' På begäran'' *1992: ''

In Country ''In Country'' is a 1989 American drama film produced and directed by Norman Jewison, starring Bruce Willis and Emily Lloyd. The screenplay by Frank Pierson and Cynthia Cidre was based on the novel by Bobbie Ann Mason. The original music sc ...

'' *1994: '' På begäran 2'' *1997: '' Långt bortom bergen'' *1999: ''

I mitt hjärta ''I mitt hjärta'' is a compilation album from Kikki Danielsson, released in Norway in 1999 and in Sweden in 2002. Twelve of the songs were recorded with Roosarna between 1994-1997. The album also contains two tracks which were new back then, and ...

'' *2001: ''100% Kikki'' *2001: '' Fri - En samling'' *2006: ''

'' *2008: ''

Kikkis bästa ''Kikkis bästa'' ( en, Kikki's Best) was released on February 27, 2008, and is a double compilation album by Kikki Danielsson. It peaked at #15 at the Swedish album chart. 2008 was 35 years since Kikki Danielsson became lead vocalist in Wizex, ...

Singles

References

External links

Kikki Danielsson
*
Grammis awards of 1994, with Kikki Danielsson & Roosarna as "Dansband of the year"
{{DEFAULTSORT:Danielsson, Kikki Swedish accordionists Swedish country singers Dansband singers Swedish pop singers Yodelers Swedish women singers Melodifestivalen contestants Melodifestivalen winners Melodi Grand Prix contestants Eurovision Song Contest entrants for Sweden Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1982 Eurovision Song Contest entrants of 1985 Schlager musicians People from Osby Municipality 1952 births Living people 20th-century Swedish women singers 21st-century Swedish women singers 21st-century Swedish singers 21st-century accordionists Wizex members Chips (band) members Roosarna members Kikki, Bettan & Lotta members English-language singers from Sweden Swedish-language singers 20th-century accordionists Women accordionists