Frida Sundemo's gorgeous voice and undeniable knack for melodies is so apparent in her latest EP. Asides, from her heavenly music, she's been in medical school and helping with COVID-19 relief in hospitals in Sweden. We talked to Frida about her new music and how she's been staying sane lately.
How did you get started in music?
Frida: So, I’ve always played a lot of instruments and I started to write instrumental pieces when I was pretty young. But it wasn’t until I was about 20 years that I got myself a studio setup and sort of found my own expression. I spent every hour possible writing and producing and after some time I started uploading my first demos on MySpace. After that, I’ve just continued creating music! I could not imagine life without it.
Tell me about “Sounds In My Head” what’s the story behind the EP?
Frida: I’ve written and produced it together with my long time companion, Joel Humlén. It was first meant to be a homage to the 90s Britpop music but we changed our minds eventually. There are definitely some influences left in some of the songs though. I would say the theme of the EP is contrasts. During this last year, I’ve been in medical school during the days and in the studio during the nights and there are some pretty big differences there. All songs on the EP are about conflicting feelings, like guilt and love or fear and courage. I guess that’s how it always is, like if you feel something, there’s always this opposite feeling in the background because otherwise, you wouldn’t be able to feel what you feel. Does that make sense? I think so anyway. It’s like life and death. One needs the other to define itself.
I read that you’ve been studying in medical school and helping with COVID-19 in Sweden, how has that affected your worldview?
Frida: I love being at hospitals. There are people from different social classes, gender, age and different political views. And I love the transformation of everyone you meet. At first, you’re just looking at a social security number on a list. Then you’re meeting the patient and suddenly it’s a whole person in front of you with a unique story. I guess these experiences must have learned me something about the world. I hope so, anyway.
How have you been staying sane during this pandemic?
Frida: Well, as you might have heard, we haven’t got that harsh rules regarding lockdown in Sweden. I’ve been able to continue my studies at the hospital every day and also creating music from home. With that said, everyone here does their best to stay at home of course and meet as few people as possible. But I don’t think that’s comparable to many other countries around the world when you’re totally stuck inside your home. I imagine that’s very tough.
What has been inspiring you lately?
Frida: All these non-profit COVID-19 initiatives from people around the world. It’s amazing to see what people do for each other. Also, I always get a lot of inspiration from the warmth and the sun and it finally seems to have come to Sweden now. It makes me a different person.
What’s your best piece of advice for young women?
Frida: Trust your instinct. And it’s OK not to have an instinct too sometimes. Don’t think about what you should have done by now, you can still do it. And surround yourself with friendly people.
Emily Treadgold
