What makes me different? Yes, I'm a blonde female singer singing pop and R&B... but I'm from Iceland! I'm bringing different influences and experiences to my music and my album is truly an international affair." So says Svala, a stunning beauty whose sizzling debut album for Priority Records serves as an exciting introduction to U.S. audiences. A recording artist in her native land since she was just seven years old, the personable singer with cover girl looks brings a combination of sass and soul to THE REAL ME, her auspicious first CD.
From the infectious groove of cuts like the upbeat title track and "Love Me, Love Me Not" - two of five songs she co-wrote for the album - to the heartfelt emotion of standout ballads "Wonder of My World" (which features a gospel choir and a full orchestra) and "Lay Your Hands" - Svala covers a diversity of music with a strong global appeal. "I'd say my album is a combination of different elements," she says with a warm smile. "There are tracks that are definitely young and fresh like 'All About You.' And then, we have some songs that are more sophisticated such as 'True Love,' which has a cool jazzy flavor. I wanted to make a record that would be able to reach a wide audience."
For the album, Svala worked with a truly international cast of writers and producers, recording in a variety of locations from her native Reykjavik to Stockholm, London and Glasgow. She ventured across the Atlantic to do sessions in Philadelphia, Los Angeles and New York. The successful Swedish team of Anders Bagge & Arnthor Birgisson (whose credits include 98 Degrees, Ricky Martin and 702) produced the catchy "Never Should Have Let You Go" and the title track; hitmaker Jive (known for his work with Mandy Moore on the hit "Candy") produced "Love Me, Love Me Not"; while Stockholm's Andreas & Josef cut the funky "Count To Four," another Svala collaboration which she explains, "is all about the end of a relationship. That's one song that it isn't based on personal experience although I have plenty of friends who've been through the situation the song describes!"
For good measure, Svala covered "You To Me Are Everything," a '70s hit for British band The Real Thing. One of a number of tracks produced by Scotland's Ian Morrow (whose credits include work with Seal and Wet Wet Wet), Svala notes, "The song has always been one of my all time favorites so when it came time to do the album, I wanted to include it. We stayed faithful to the original arrangement but we updated for today's audiences."
Jorgen Elofsson - writer of Britney Spears' hits "(You Drive Me) Crazy" and "Sometimes" - penned the tender ballad "Falling" with Svala: "It's the story of a girl who is resisting being in love. She doesn't want to accept that she's in love because she really doesn't have time to put into a relationship. The guy may be great but she's a busy girl with a busy life. Now that's something I can relate to!"
Indeed, while Svala is just beginning a new chapter in her international career, she's been busy making music since as far back as she can remember. The daughter of Icelandic superstar Bo Halldorsson - who, she quips "is as famous as our president!" - Svala recalls that she was "born into the music business. My father is one of the most successful singers and producers in our country so I was always in the studio and around a lot of musicians. There was never any pressure from my Dad for me to get into music as a career. In fact, I was always the one who was asking to record and go into the studio. Doing jingles and commercials was a great way for me to earn extra cash as a young girl!"
Influenced by a wide range of artists - "from Patsy Cline and Fleetwood Mac, The Carpenters, Stephen Bishop, Ella Fitzgerald and Barbra Streisand, who is still my all-time favorite, to Luther Vandross, Lionel Richie, Teddy Pendergrass, Barry White and later Madonna, Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey," Svala was first heard on record at the age of seven when she was featured on a Christmas album by her father. Two years later, she cut a Christmas duet with him that is still played every holiday season in Iceland. When she was eleven, she had another Christmas hit single but, she recalls, "I also had a real interest in dancing. In fact, I was in the national dance theater company and I really wanted to be a prima ballerina..."
The lure of singing and making music was even stronger and in high school, Svala sang with a few local bands. "I was experimenting, trying different things. Once I got to college, I started singing with some friends. They were d.j.'s and we were just messing around when we decided to do a version of "Was That All It Was," which was a song that soul and jazz singer Jean Carne had done in Philadelphia in the '70s. It was put on a dance compilation in Iceland - and the next thing we knew, we were a group called Scope with an overnight hit record!"
The success of the single led to Svala's first performances on shows with British acts like Prodigy and Saint-Etienne and after eighteen months working with Scope and other bands (including a soul band named The Bubbleflies who specialized in doing Motown classics), Svala decided it was time to begin her solo journey. "In 1997, I was approached by Skifan Records which is the largest record company in Iceland to sign with them," she notes. "From the very start, I wanted to make a record that would introduce me to audiences in the U.S. as well as other parts of Europe."
Initially working with Glasgow-based producer Morrow, Svala wrote a number of songs and spent time in the studio "developing my style and direction. Once we had done a certain amount of material, Skifan began sending out tapes to different U.S. companies. Priority Records was the one we went with."
Adding material to the work she had done with Morrow, Svala traveled to various locations to record with producers and writers. "I remember going to Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia to work with Mr. Mig who had done remixes with artists like LeAnn Rimes and Vitamin C. I was so starstruck," Svala smiles, "because I saw all the gold records on the walls by R&B groups like The Stylistics and The Delfonics. I couldnéź™ believe I was there in the same studio!"
Working on THE REAL ME during much of 2000, Svala says she was committed to "making a record with a lot of different elements, a real mix of pop and R&B. You're likely to find me listening to artists like Mary J. Blige, Joe, Next, Tamia and Sisqo so you're going to hear the influence of R&B in my music. But I also have the European pop styles I grew up around. I'd like to think my album is about a lot of different musical worlds all coming together."
With her naturally sensuous looks and outgoing personality, Svala is excited about introducing her music to U.S. audiences in particular and following in the footsteps of another famed Icelandic musical export, singer/songwriter Bjork. "She's very talented, a real trendsetter and she's definitely opened up doors for other Icelandic artists to become well known everywhere. Musically, we're completely different... and just as she has, I hope I can show audiences that Iceland is a very musical country with a lot to offer...
Whether displaying her tender side with "Close To You" or stepping up to the plate with the sassy jeep jam "Love Me, Love Me Not," Svala has created a refreshing, exciting album with THE REAL ME, a record that captures her many musical facets: "The album's for everyone," she smiles, "and I can't wait to get out there and let people see what I'm about and what I can do!"
