Interview with Aleksander Holt (myself)

 

Interview with Aleksander Holt - 2. November 2021

  

Biography of Aleksander Holt + fun fact

Hello, my name is Aleksander Holt. I am a 15 years old boy from Norway. I was born on 28th September 2006. I live together with my family (mom, dad, and my brother). I'm calling my grandma every day to talk about what I did at school, for example. I live in a big city in Norway called Fredrikstad. I am the administrator and the founder of The Art of Music.

My hobbies are biking, shooting, and volunteer youth leader for some churches in Fredrikstad. I started to practice biking when I was 4-5 years old, with my dad helping me. I have biked to school almost every day since 5th grade (August 2015-). I started as a shooter in November 2018. I went to shooting until March 2020, when corona came and stopped it. So I returned in September 2021, and I am shooting every Wednesday.

I have been a volunteer youth leader for four churches in Fredrikstad since October 2021. I started as a VYL because I am a social boy. I also like to talk and meet new people. The first event was a camp from 22nd to 24th October 2021. The event was for those who wanted to be VYLs, to unite and be more known with other teenagers (14-16) that also wanted to be VYLs.

Facts about myself:

 I was born with so-called hydrocephalus. Hydrocephalus is when you suddenly get too much fluid in your head. It will not have a solid shape, which means it will expand until it is hard. My operation happened between April and June 2007. I have also operated my feet in the summer of 2011, but I don't remember why.

Fun fact about myself:

Many people get surprised when I tell them that I am only 15 years old.

Let's start the interview.

Have you grown up in a music family or weren't your parents interested in music?

No, I did not grow up in a family that sings or dances. But I grew up in a family that listens to a lot of music. My family watches a lot of music competitions like Idol, The Voice, Maskorama, MGP, and ESC. Now I do not talk much with his father about how genres of music he likes or not, but I know he likes Rock and Roger Waters. My mom listens mainly to pop like me.

 

Why do you love music as much as you do?

Music has always been a part of my life, ever since I was born in 2006, because it gives me the feeling that I am never alone, and that I always have someone who takes care of me, likes me, makes me feel included, better. It also makes me united with people from all over the world. Music gives me different emotions such as sadness, angriness or happiness, while other songs give me no emotions at all. I am mostly a fan of songs where I understand what the song is about, with good lyrics and melody. If the music does not give me any emotion, I do not know if I think the song is good or not ...

So how long have you been listening to music, and what genre(s) do you like?

I've been listening to music for as long as I can remember. Music gives me a feeling that I am never alone and that I have many people around me who also like the same as me. It also helps me focus better sometimes. Music has always been a part of me, and will always be in everything from sad to happy, good to bad, fun to boring days.

My favorite genre is pop and rock. Pop music and ballads give me memories of the "old days", it also gives me more strength. I have a feeling that I would have been depressed if I had not had any music to listen to when I am alone because when it is completely quiet I feel sad and lonely. I also love artists like KEiiNO, Within Temptation, Nightwish.

KEiiNO is a group consisting of Tom Hugo, Fred Buljo and Alexandra Rotan. Alexandra is the frontman in the band and sings most of it, while Tom Hugo is more than a chorister, but he is also a frontman with Alexandra and Fred. Fred is both a rapper and a joiker. KEiiNO is named after Fred's hometown, Kautokeino. I became known with KEiiNO after they participated in the Melodi Grand Prix in 2019, and won the televote in Eurovision 2019 (finished in 6th place). Within Temptation (Dutch band) and Nightwish (Finnish band).

How long have you followed Eurovision and/or Melodi Grand Prix, and what is your favourite song(s) from Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix? You can name 1 to 5 songs. Can you explain why you chose this song/these songs as your favourite songs from ESC and MGP?

I started watching Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix, as a 12 and 1/2-year-old in 2019. I love Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix because of the unity between people from all over the world, the discovery of new artists, songs, genres, etc.

Five random Eurovision songs I like:

1. Ireland 1987 - Johnny Logan - Hold Me Now

What I like about the songs is the lyrics, the meaning, the melody, and the structure of the song. It starts weak and vulnerable, and builds up to more powerful, while still being just as vulnerable.

2. Norway 2019 - KEiiNO - Spirit In The Sky

I like the song because the unity of the band members: Alexandra, Tom, and Fred, is magical. When Alexandra sings, I goosebumps. Her voice is so incredibly beautiful. Tom Hugo is often the chorister but he also sings as a frontman with Alexandra. While Fred joiks and raps. When we put together Alexandra's voice, the lyrics, the melodies, the chorus of Tom Hugo, and the yoik of Fred, the songs become magical.

3. Netherlands 2013 - Anouk - Birds

I like this song because it is very vulnerable just like Hold Me Now by Johnny Logan. The song starts calmly and relaxing, it also gets more power in the choruses and gives me chills.

4. Sweden 2014 - Sanna Nielsen - Undo

I love this song, the voice of Sanna, the lyrics and the melody of the song are magical. I love all the power she puts into the song. I do not have much to complain about. Although the song is not my all-time favorite, I think the song is one of the best songs that Sweden has ever sent to Eurovision.

5. Norway 1995 - Secret Garden - Nocturne

I have very little to comment on this song except the song is simply ABSOLUTELY MAGICAL, that a song with almost only melody (violin) can be so good. I have no words ...

Do you have any thoughts about Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Season?

To be honest, I have no thoughts regarding the Eurovision 2022 Season, but I'm sure there will be good songs, good artists, good shows, variety in the songs, and a big party for all of us Eurovision and MGP fans.

Okay thank you so much for the amazing interview, Aleksander. And thank you also for using some of your time to talk with me. 

Interview with Giulia Lullabymechta Pini

 

Interview with Giulia Lullabymechta Pini - 1. November 2021

Biography of Giulia Lullabymechta Pini + fun fact

Hello, my name is Giulia. 

I am an Italian woman. I love singing for my friends and going to concerts, traveling, discover castles, museums, and churches. But not only that, I also love swimming, reading, writing, photographing, volunteering, be together with my friends, family and my beautiful mother, Miriam. I live near Florence, and I am a survivor of cancer.

Let's start the interview.

Have you grown up in a music family or weren't your parents interested in music?

Yes, I grew up in a family that loves music. My grandfather was a tango teacher, one of my uncles was an operatic singer, the other was playing instruments. Mummy loves singing and has a beautiful voice. My father was also a music lover. And I love singing as well as I said in the biography. 

Why do you love music as much as you do?

I love music because it helps me feel better when I feel alone and sad. And when I listen to a song or sing, I feel much better than before. Music is my soul theraphy.  

So how long have you been listening to music, and what genre(s) do you like?

 I have listened to music since I was a baby. I listen to almost all genres, for example, folk, punk, rock, metal, alternative, pop, Acid, Italian music, grunge, and Latin. I must admit that I love tango. I want to learn the tango and South American dances. 

How long have you followed Eurovision and/or Melodi Grand Prix?

 I began watching Eurovision in 1990 at two years old and saw Italy win with "Insieme: 1992" and Toto Cutugno. In 2019, I went on a vacation to Zagreb. It was very incredible to live in a hotel near the theatre where Italy won ESC in 1990. And I watched MGP for the first time in 2019 when KEiiNO won.

What is your favourite song(s) from Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix? You can name 1 to 5 songs. 

 Italy 2021 - Måneskin - Zitti E Buoni

Italy 2018 - Meta & Moro - Non mi avete fatto niente

Norway 2019 - KEiiNO - Spirit In The Sky

Turkey 1996 - Sebnem Paker - Besinci Mevsim

Poland 1995 - Justyna - Sama

Do you have any thoughts about Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Season?

 I hope the show is full of surprises, and the songs are full of energy and emotions. 

Okay thank you so much for the amazing interview, Giulia. And thank you also for using some of your time to talk with me. 

Interview with Anna Angelika Rozmus

Interview with Anna Angelika Rozmus 1. November 2021

Biography of Anna Angelika Rozmus + fun fact Born on 26th may 1992 In Katowice, moved to Cieszyn when she was 3. Loves singing and is an amateur belly dancer. Created a stage name AnnaXita Paradise. Fun fact: is 30 but looks and behaves 13. She loves it and finds it cute 

  Let's start the interview. Have you grown up in a music family or weren't your parents interested in music? No, my parents werent really interested in music but I have musical roots. My grandmas aunt was an opera singer and grandpa a conductor in an choir. Maybe I simply have it in genes. But sing since I remember because thats the only thing i can do. It makes me happy 

  Why do you love music as much as you do? Maybe because it describes my emotions and it calms me down. Its my good friend. If Im sad then I listen to music. And if Im happy then I listen to music. Cant live without it 

  So how long have you been listening to music, and what genre(s) do you like? Since i was little, i think 4. Love New Age, R&B, metal, electro and 80s eurodance. And obviously ancient Italian anthems. But my biggest influence are Vangelis and Jean Michel Jarre. In fact I dont like to limit myself to one thing in anything 

  How long have you followed Eurovision and/or Melodi Grand Prix? Since 2014 frequently but my first esc was in 2001. Became a fan in 2016 and started making toplists on Movie Maker. Now since its dead, i cant figure out the New program. Dont follow MGP since Im Polish. I love to wait for what will happen 

What is your favourite song(s) from Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix? You can name 1 to 5 songs. Can you explain why you chose this song/these songs as your favourite songs from ESC and MGP? Molitva, Grande amore, voila. They are my saint trinity in eurovision. Love them cos they are very emotional prayers, thats the kind of music that plays in my heart. I remember only fool for love, lovely song 

  Do you have any thoughts about Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Season? Lets see what time will show. I wish to have a surprise. Was kind of Dizzy when I saw New songs in 2019, then this year i checked all and was so eager to see these songs immediately. And fell for one contestant because I understand his condition and story. Now I dont want to see anything till esc comes 

  If you have any more Eurovision or music related things to tell me, feel free to tell as much as you want. My wish is to win Eurovision myself but its impossible. Because of difficulties and emotional Bond with one contestant i came back to black metal in order to forget. Back after 12 years. My obsession with metal started when I was 12 and saw 3 or 4 handsome metals and I wanted to be like them. And fell in love with their handsome faces 

  Okay thank you Anna, for spending some of your time answering my questions

Interview with Karina Brandt Rasmussen

Interview with Karina Brandt Rasmussen - 1. November 2021

Biography of Karina Brandt Rasmussen + fun fact My name is Karina Brandt Rasmussen, I am 50 years old and the mother of Katrine who is 15 and Laura who is nearly 13 years old. I live in Sønderborg on the island of Als, in the southernmost part of Denmark, half an hour from the border to Germany. Music has a very important place in my life, probably the most important place right after my family. I handle different instruments myself and grew up in a musical family and have sung in a choir for many years. My interest in working with music started in 1999 when Irish Westlife was the support band on Boyzone's Europe tour. We were a couple of mature fans who started a fan club to gather and connect fans all over the world. At that point the internet had started to become something everyone had. Very quickly it became clear that a national fan club was not enough, so we expanded to international and within two months, we had 10,000 members worldwide. In the end we ended up with 36,000 members, spread across 45 countries with branches in 30 of those countries. Some of the departments were nominated their countries’ official fan clubs as well. For me personally, life got in the way and I had to step out of the fan club and let others run it, but one of my friends from that time and I, agreed two years ago that it would be funny to make something like that again. Just two weeks later, I was part of the KEiiNO Fan Group administration, and from there it grew. I used the experience I had with WFU (Westlife Fans United) to get the KEiiNO Fan Group going, told my co-admins about how it worked in 1999, and before long we were well underway. The jobs and tasks were divided between us, and because I was the one with the most time on hand and the most experience, I became the one who generally stands for most things. In May 2020, I started the news site, KEiiNO NEWS, which contains everything that is not on KEiiNO's own website, such as articles translated from Norwegian to English, the lyrics to the songs, fan art, fan stories, and much more. When I am not working with music, I am an independent artist, designer and publisher. I have a publishing company called My Inner Movie Publishing, which is still under development. As an artist, I work with making artist dolls, such as portrait dolls. Among other things, I have Made Fred Buljo and Tom Hugo as children, with help from their mothers who have lent me pictures, etc. And I am now working on a portrait doll of Alexandra Rotan as approximately One-year-old. Otherwise, I make dolls as therapy dolls for the disabled, people with anxiety, people with dementia, but also people who can’t or are not allowed having children. Then they find a good replacement in a realistic doll, like a band-aid on the wound. As a designer, I work with designing baby- and children's clothes, both knit and sew. I sell mostly to the USA so there is not much to find here in the Nordics of what I have made, but the dolls I make are almost always dressed in something I have designed. There is also some advertising in it. Fun fact: I love to prank people, especially my daughters and their dad. But only do funny pranks, never pranks that would hurt others. Some years ago I had a large mannequin doll that was dressed as a pirate, and for Christmas as Santa Claus. He always scared people even though they knew he was standing there. Let's start the interview. Have you grown up in a music family or weren't your parents interested in music? I am from a very musical family where music and singing have always played an important role. My father played the Violin, my mother the organ and accordion, I myself got a mini piano for Christmas as a two-year-old and could after three days play "little Peter Edderkop" - a Danish children's song. Later I learned to play guitar, organ and flute, and I got the opportunity to take over an old accordion and learned to play a little on it too. There was musicians in other parts of my family too, my dad’s sister and her husband were performers and we have a Eurovision performer in the family too. He participated with his band in Eurovision 1987 for Denmark. Why do you love music as much as you do? To me, music is what feelings sound like. It touches different emotions in me, some music makes me sad, some happy, something encourages a little aggression or anxiety, if I for some reason am agitated, some types of music calms me down. Music often goes straight to my heart and depending on the feeling the individual piece of music gives me, then either I like it or not. Therefore, my taste in music is also quite varied, as I do not depend on genre or artist as such, but on the melody and sound of the instruments first and foremost, then the singer's voice and the song's lyrics. If everything goes up in a higher unit for me, then it's something I'll listen to a lot. Throughout my life I have also sung and played various instruments myself and it gives so much to the quality of life to sing and play, especially when it is with others. So how long have you been listening to music, and what genre(s) do you like? I have listened to music since before I was born. Being born into a musical family, music was a daily thing while my mum was pregnant with my brother and me. After birth, I wasn’t able to sleep unless the radio was running with some sort of music. I like a lot of varied music but electropop and EDM is probably the music I like best. I watch Eurovision every year and almost all national MGP finals. How long have you followed Eurovision and/or Melodi Grand Prix? The earliest Melodi Grand Prix and Eurovision I remember watching was back in 1980. Denmark was represented by Bamses Venner, which I clearly remember and my other memory of that year was Papa Penguin by Sophie et Magaly. Since then I followed MGP and Eurovision more or less every year. What is your favourite song(s) from Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix? You can name 1 to 5 songs. Can you explain why you chose this song/these songs as your favourite songs from ESC and MGP? Oh boy, what a question, how much time and space do you have available? With so many years of watching I have so many songs from Eurovision I love. My top favourite is Spirit in the Sky with KEiiNO, straight followed by Nocturne by Secret Garden. I followed Secret Garden ever since they won Eurovision. Other songs from Eurovision I really love is Estonia’s Verona from 2017 with Koit and Laura, Denmark’s Higher Ground with Rasmussen from 2018. This year’s Fallen Angel with Tix was fantastic but I was and am more in love with KEiiNO’s Monument, which struck my chords harder. Noway’s contribution in 1996, Den Vilda, is one I really love and still often listen to. It is constructed differently than most songs, which is something I really love - a trait a lot of KEiiNO’s music also has. As a last one (I could go on and on) I absolutely HAVE to mention Sweden’s 1984, Herrey’s with Diggi Loo Diggi Ley, which hit me rockhard. I was 13 years old and felt like struck by lightning when I saw them on stage. They were my first idols ever. Do you have any thoughts about Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Season? I think something we will see more of in 2022 season is more rocksongs in national language. Italy’s contribution this year knocked people over and I think that because other countries also want to win, they try to follow the example of what the audience wants - something more modern but in national language that represents the country. I think we will also see more punk and face-paint, both in 2022 and in the future in general, as it seems to please the audience. If you have any more Eurovision or music related things to tell me, feel free to tell as much as you want. I’m sorry I can’t think of anything right now, but please feel free to ask additional questions Okay thank you so much for the amazing interview Karina. And thank you also for using some of your time to talk with me. You are welcome and thank you for your interest

Interview with Milica Nikolic

Interview with Milica Nikolic - 1. November 2021

Biography of Milica Nikolic + fun fact

Milica Nikolic comes from Serbia and likes to hang out with her friends. During the covid time, it has become rarer. She also likes to walk in nature, listen to music. Reading books is also one of her interests. She loves books that make her so interested that she can't leave the book, and she can read it in many hours without getting tired.

Let's start the interview.

Have you grown up in a music family or weren't your parents interested in music?

Milica didn't grow up with a musical family by profession, but her father has a beautiful voice, and her mom likes to sing a lot. She listens to music as much as she can. Her family listens a lot to music when they want to relax or celebrate something (like Christmas and birthdays), or while they are socializing with guests or other people. 

Why do you love music as much as you do?

Milica likes to sing and used to sing in a choir in elementary school from 5th to 8th grade (11-14/15 years old). She also likes to dance traditional dances and Latino dance. Because it makes her relaxed, feel better, express her emotions. She used to play piano and likes to hear other people play piano, saxophone, guitar, etc. She goes to concerts with her friends to enjoy music. 

So how long have you been listening to music, and what genre(s) do you like?

She thought she had heard music already from before her birth, since her mom likes to sing a lot. Milica likes various genres, and her favorite genres are pop & rock because it just suits her the most. She loves rhythm, melody, and lyrics. What she likes most are the ballads. She also likes faster rhythm, the songs that make her dance or make her doesn't sit steady in the chair. She doesn't know how to rave or dance to electronic music (EDM), techno, or heavy metal. She can still listen to and enjoy songs from those genres too. But she still prefers pop & rock and suits more to her character. She also likes some traditional songs from her country. She likes old music as much as the new more popular songs. 

How long have you followed Eurovision and/or Melodi Grand Prix?

Milica has been a Eurovision fan since her childhood. She watches it every year but dislikes the voting. She thinks that Eurovision shouldn't be a competition, but a music festival with all genres. She usually has a few favorite songs each year. And 10-15 songs she likes very much. It is a great event, where people from different countries all over the world get united. In 2008, Milica went to the Eurovision venue and loved every minute of it. 

What is your favourite song(s) from Eurovision and Melodi Grand Prix? You can name 1 to 5 songs. Can you explain why you chose this song/these songs as your favourite songs from ESC and MGP?

There are too many favorite songs from the history of Eurovision. Milica couldn't choose. She has a few favorites each year. Her 2021 favorite songs are Norway, Malta, Spain, UK, Germany, Italy, Iceland, Ireland, Finland... Those songs are different, so she likes many of them. This year's MGP favorite is "Fallen Angel" by TIX and "Monument" by KEiiNO. 

Do you have any thoughts about Eurovision Song Contest 2022 Season?

She hasn't got any thoughts so far, but she can hardly wait for it. She is so excited to discover new artists and hear new songs…

Okay thank you so much for the amazing interview Milica. And thank you also for using some of your time to talk with me.