Sweden has always had great success showcasing its musical talent globally, especially in the dance and pop spheres. But 2025 is shaping up to be a special year for Swedish music at large, especially when it comes to the artists who are experimenting with genre-defying sounds.
At the start of the year, we put a spotlight on this scene with our list of Swedish Artists To Watch in 2025 featuring some of the country's most promising indie acts, as well as hip-hop stars who are pushing their styles into new melodic territories. The list exemplifies the global appeal of Sweden's music scene.
Next month, the 42nd edition of Sweden's Grammis awards show returns to recognize the nation's best and brightest musical talents. As a proud sponsor of this annual celebration, Spotify recently had the honor of announcing the nominees for the Best New Artist category, which include: Becky and the Birds, Hannes Aitman, ORKID, Sunnan, and Y4ska.
NEXT
To get the inside scoop on Sweden's thriving music scene, as well as the genres and artists breaking through, For the Record sat down with Emma Vikstr m, Spotify Music Editorial Lead in the Nordics.
What makes the Swedish music scene so unique? Despite being a small country, Sweden exports the most music per capita. Our artists have had a major impact globally, and Spotify data shows that Swedish artists are streamed more outside of our country than within.
There are legendary groups like ABBA that helped shape the sound of pop music, trendsetters like Robyn that have had an outsized influence on the artistry of stars like Tove Lo, and ubiquitous icons like Avicii that left an indelible mark on dance music.
Songwriters and producers have been just as important to our music culture as well, if not more! You know your favorite global hit? There's a good chance a Swedish songwriter or producer was involved. Max Martin defined an entire generation of pop music and is still making his presence felt through artists like Ariana Grande. And there are so many more examples. Ludwig G ransson has worked with Rihanna, Patrik Berger has worked with Taylor Swift, and Carl Falk has worked with One Direction, to name a few.
Was this still the case in 2024? New releases from Swedish artists are definitely finding fans abroad.
Looking back at 2024, we saw notable releases from hitmakers like Galantis, Zara Larsson, and Robyn, and they all resonated with a global audience. And interestingly, artists who may not be familiar names globally-like Elliphant, Benjamin Ingrosso, and Mapei-have also found new fans abroad. Swedish songwriters Noonie Bao and Linus Wiklund also influenced a whole world with Charli Xcx's Apple, one of the biggest songs from Brat Summer.
And we can't forget that last year's Wrapped also revealed Bladee as the most-streamed artist among other artists.
How do you explain the massive global appeal of Swedish music? From a creative perspective, Sweden has a well-developed music education system, with many young people learning to sing, play instruments, and write songs from an early age. There's a collective affinity for melodic pop sounds here thanks to popular music competitions like Melodifestivalen and generational melodic wealth of ABBA's catalogue. And because many Swedish artists sing in English, their songs have a larger global appeal that has increased with the help of Spotify.
From an industry perspective, this global appeal has definitely been aided by Spotify and the overall growth of digital audio and streaming.
And looking at this in the opposite direction, music fans in Sweden are also early adopters who are tapped into global sounds. The first region where Shaboozey's A Bar Song (Tipsy) landed a number-one hit was in Sweden and Nordics.
How do Spotify's editorial playlists shape music trends in Sweden and the rest of the world? Our playlists highlight the best and most culturally relevant music for users, but in contextual ways. Some playlists will cater to different tastes, moods, and times of day. Other playlists, like New Music Friday Sweden and pov, highlight the new or trending hits. Fresh Finds Nordics surfaces unsigned artists for the listeners who love being the first to know about an artist. And Hot Hits is all about the biggest hits on the planet right now, plain and simple.
It's also been exciting to watch Teddy Swims, Benson Boone, and GAYLE make waves in the music world at large, as well as our global playlist ecosystem. They all had their first hits playlist adds in Nordics or Sweden and reached the top of the charts here before anywhere. Nordic users love discovering new music and being first with trends, which makes our curation strategy even more bold. We bet on songs in our playlist ecosystems that then eventually turn into global hits and keep our users satisfied.
Music sharing and discovery continue to evolve. How does this benefit artists and consumers? Artists from almost anywhere in the world have a chance to be discovered. A Swedish artist could have a bigger fan base and audience in other countries, and artists from other countries could have bigger fan bases in Sweden. That's the beauty of Spotify being global by design.
For listeners, it has never been easier to find their new favorite artists. With more than 100 million songs on Spotify today, there's something for everyone to discover. And sometimes, those discoveries happen through the songs and artists and genres recommended by our editors.
We're aware of the responsibility that our platform has to spotlight promising artists who may be in the early stages of their careers or are just breaking through to stardom and take active strides to ensure we support these by leaning into the Best New Artist category at Grammis or developing our Fresh Finds Nordics flagship
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
10/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
10/06/2026
Accedo, Humans not Robots, and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) have announced the launch of Ecoflow X. Formerly an IBC Accelerator project, ...
10/06/2026
Frequency, the engine powering the world's leading streaming television channels, today announced that James Smith has joined the company as General Manager...
10/06/2026
At the 14th World Live Neurovascular Conference (WLNC) in Lisbon, Riedel Communications provided the communications infrastructure for live medical procedures s...
10/06/2026
Globecast, a leading provider of broadcast, media, and entertainment managed services, today announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform powered by Or...
10/06/2026
Klvr will showcase how venues, integrators and production teams are rethinking disposable battery usage at InfoComm 2026 (Las Vegas, June 17-19, booth #N6311). ...
10/06/2026
The Video Services Forum (VSF) has further enhanced the Reliable Internet Streaming Transport (RIST) protocol by incorporating a new feature, RIST Satellite-Hyb...
10/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
10/06/2026
Chemists snap together complex 3D molecules from highly reactive radicals-without losing their shape Scripps Research team develops stereoretentive radical-radi...
09/06/2026
Kiswe announces an expanded long-term partnership with ONE Championship (ONE), t...
09/06/2026
SiriusXM will broadcast FOX Sports' English-language commentary for all 104 FIFA World Cup 2026 matches from June 11 through July 19, available to subscribe...
09/06/2026
EVS has announced it is changing its corporate name from EVS Broadcast Equipment to EVS, reflecting the company's expanded portfolio beyond broadcast equipm...
09/06/2026
Fox Corporation and the NFL have announced a multi-year agreement to bring NFL c...
09/06/2026
FOX Sports and ReachTV, an airport media network, have announced an agreement to...
09/06/2026
Cosm Atlanta, a 70,000-square-foot, three-level immersive entertainment venue located within Centennial Yards adjacent to State Farm Arena and Mercedes-Benz Sta...
09/06/2026
NESN captured five awards at the 2026 Boston/New England Emmy Awards, including four program honors and one individual award.
These awards reflect the passion...
09/06/2026
Ateme has announced that its support for Apple Immersive Video workflows was referenced by Apple during its 2026 Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC26).
Atem...
09/06/2026
Bitmovin has announced that Axel Springer SE has deployed Player Web X, Bitmovin's web video player, to power audio readouts of news articles and an audio-o...
09/06/2026
Grass Valley and Lawo have announced a technology collaboration to validate orch...
09/06/2026
LiveU has announced a deployment with the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) t...
09/06/2026
Globecast has announced the launch of its Content Exchange platform, powered by ...
09/06/2026
NBC Sports will present live coverage of Overtime's OT7 football league Championship Weekend from Sullivan Field at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angel...
09/06/2026
We're in three different locations, three different production teams. Coveri...
09/06/2026
The intro video for Men's Basketball won Outstanding In-Venue Video in the C...
09/06/2026
Today is match day minus two for FIFA and HBS. On Thursday, there will be two ma...
09/06/2026
Since their debut, the clock-and-score graphic has drawn the affinity and ire of...
09/06/2026
Last month, Spotify hosted PURE FLOWERS LIVE, a special event celebrating the re...
09/06/2026
Last month, RADAR U.K. artist Skye Newman took the stage in East London for a sp...
09/06/2026
Company to cease operating on 30 June 2026
Australian loudspeaker and amplifier manufacturer Wayne Jones Audio have announced that after much consideration,...
09/06/2026
Increases low-end weight and character
The latest plug-in release from Sheffield-based fedDSP aims to offer an all-in-one solution for users in search of mo...
09/06/2026
Introduces AI Studio Assistant, Moises Studio integration & more
Fender Studio have just announced the launch a significant update that brings an array of n...
09/06/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is a statutory body mandated to spearhead the equitable growth and development of the South African film and video...
09/06/2026
The BBC has found its Hercule Poirot.
After Deadline revealed last month that t...
09/06/2026
Media buyers and sellers can now compare YouTube reach from computer, mobile, an...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
A project aimed at modernizing scheduling operations across Mediaset's channel portfolio
Mediagenix, a global leader in smart content solutions to profitab...
09/06/2026
tvONE, an ACT Entertainment brand, debuts its most powerful video processor ever built: the 4RU CALICO PRO (C7-PRO-4200), at InfoComm 2026 (Booth N6813). Engine...
09/06/2026
Composer and Conductor Eric Whitacre to Receive Honorary Doctorate at Berklee Va...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
09/06/2026
Technology collaboration to validate AMPP and Lawo HOME orchestration integration, showcasing Dynamic Media Facility principles in practice.
Grass Valley and ...
09/06/2026
Bitmovin, a leading provider of video streaming solutions, today announced that Axel Springer SE, international media and technology company, has deployed Playe...
09/06/2026
LiveU, the global leader in live IP-video solutions, today announced a landmark deployment with the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) that has brought Video ...
Sweden has always had great success showcasing its musical talent globally, especially in the dance and pop spheres. But 2025 is shaping up to be a special year for Swedish music at large, especially when it comes to the artists who are experimenting with genre-defying sounds.
