Marie Fredriksson

New Roxette material in 2015

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The news regarding the BMI London Awards reached Musikindustrin.se. They asked Per about the gala, The Per Gessle Archives, his books and Roxette.

About the gala Per said it was a lighthearted event with the usual red carpet-walking and quick TV interviews where the subjects changed between Marie’s brain tumor and Miley Cyrus’s tongue. He tells the award for this year’s song, Daft Punk’s Get Lucky was well deserved. Getting 2 awards, one together with MP for more than 5 million plays of Listen To Your Heart and one for more than 5 million plays of It Must Have Been Love among other, much older songs with the same amount of airplays was good for the ego, Per says. But all other 5 million-air songs are fantastic.

Regarding the book fair in Gothenburg he says whenever he / they do an official appearance, The International Hardcore Fans always turn up.

It’s always nice, they are really wonderful supporters from around the world who are there for better or worse. So the book fair was a very happy event for me. Lots of people and good atmosphere.

And now some news for all those who don’t fancy the idea of another greatest hits album. Per confirms again:

Roxette has been in the studio and finished a bunch of singles that will be released next year. We also aim to put together a brand new album in 2015, but right now we are concentrating on the “XXX – The 30th Anniversary Tour” starting October 28 in Vladivostok. It ends, as it looks now, the summer of 2016. I believe my passport expires then.

roxette

 

Music Against Cancer – signed guitars from Roxette

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Musik Mot Cancer (Music Against Cancer) is a non-profit organization. Their purpose is, on a voluntary basis, to raise money for Barncancerfonden Väst (children’s cancer foundation) and the children’s department of the hospital in Norra Älvsborg. They collect autographs on instruments and other things from musicians and put them up for auction together with the photo of the artists holding the signed item.

Yesterday they met Marie and Per and got a guitar signed. The guitar, together with this photo, will be auctioned until 16th November, Music Against Cancer Day. The event will take place in Folkets Hus Kulturhuset in Trollhättan, Sweden between 14.00-20.00 on 16th November. Check out Musik Mot Cancer’s website and Facebook page for the details! Here is the event page on Facebook.

Photo taken from Musik Mot Cancer's Facebook page
Photo taken from Musik Mot Cancer’s Facebook page

 

Update on 23rd October:

There seem to be 2 more guitars besides the one signed by both Marie and Per. One is signed by Marie only and another by Per only. See picture below. According to the website, signed instruments will be available on the website, too, for online auction from 24th October that lasts until 16th November and winners will be announced at the event mentioned above.

MF_PG_Rox_guitars_Musik_Mot_Cancer

Update on 25th October:

Links to the auctions:

Starting price for all 3 guitars is 1000 SEK. One has to register on the website for bidding. Anyone can bid from around the world, but mainly in case you are not from Sweden, I suggest you contact the organizers, since I’m very sure they will not deliver the guitars at their own expense. Check it with them before you would bid. Contact them HERE.

Update on 2nd November:

Musik Mot Cancer added some more items signed by Marie and Per. 2 Marie and 2 Roxette CDs, a Roxette DVD, one of Per’s books and a TPGA box. You can also bid on these items, just click Gå till Auktionen här at the website and then scroll down.

Update on 13th November:

Article in 7 dagar

Per Gessle and MP at the BMI Awards

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The 2014 BMI London Awards took place at the Dorchester Hotel (Park Lane) tonight. The invitation-only gala recognizes the UK and European songwriters and publishers of the past year’s most-played BMI songs on American radio and television. As Per posted about it earlier today, he and Mats MP Persson were there to receive the Million-Air Awards for Listen To Your Heart and It Must Have Been Love for the songs being played more than 5 million times each. Per has been prepared for this event since at least a year ago, when he posted a pic of him and MP from the 2005 gala. 5 million plays! Sounds fab, doesn’t it! I mean it’s really huge! Just to make it easier (or harder) to imagine, 5 million plays of LTYH means appr. 50 years if it were constantly played and 5 million plays of IMHBL means appr. 41 years. Amazing!

In the meantime, LTYH video is heading for 40 million views on YouTube, while IMHBL is heading for 45 million. Millions here and there and everywhere. Hats off! Before the gala, Per posted both videos (1, 2) on Roxette Official with these words:

OVER five million radioplays in the US. Happy. Proud. Thanx everyone for listening! /P.

BMI_2014
Check the photo on BMI’s website!

Per says in a short BMI interview:

I hope we’re good role models for the new generation.

 

One more short PG interview has been uploaded by BMI on 27th October. Check it out by clicking HERE.

 

BMI Awards
MP, Marie and Per at the BMI Awards gala in 2005. Pic from BMI.

1 million plays earlier, It Must Have Been Love got the BMI Million-Air Award for 4 million plays in 2005. Marie and Per were there at the gala. You’ll find some pics here. You can watch a video with Per from that year about how he started and another about how he writes.

Listen To Your Heart got the award for 4 million plays 3 years later, in 2008. Here you will find a pic and here a video with Per and MP. Per says:

It’s great! I mean this is for 4 million airplays. It’s the second time I’m part of it. This is for Listen To Your Heart, last time it was for It Must Have Been Love. It’s just amazing! Amazing! I have to pinch my arm. It’s just great!

 

Photos from the event:

Photos on Roxette Official and PER GESSLE OFFICIAL: 1, 2, 3, 4,

rexfeatures.com photos

contactmusic.com

entertainment.ie

tipsimages.it: 1, 2, 3

monstersandcritics.com: 1, 2, 3

musikindustrin.se article

 

Marie Fredriksson writes music for a movie

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Photo of Marie by Pernilla Pettersson

You remember Marie Fredriksson‘s Sista sommarens vals video, don’t you? It was directed by Emil Jonsvik. Why am I mentioning this video now? It’s because today the director posted a photo of Marie on his Instagram profile saying that she is writing music for his new movie. It sounds quite exciting!

I’ve contacted Emil to ask some details about this project, but he kindly replied it’s a bit too early to share more info. He could only tell that Marie wrote 1 song for the movie and the film will represent Sweden in China at the beginning of November and it is planned to be premiered in Sweden early 2015 and after that worldwide.

Title of the movie is Krigarnas ö (The Name of The Game) and it’s a drama. Story:

On an idyllic archipelago island Peter will spend a few days together with his daughter Sandra in an attempt to catch up on lost times. They have barely met since the tragic suicide of his son five years earlier and Peter has been struggling to accept the loss of his own child. When on the island Sandra meets a group of youngsters who entice her with both friendship as well as romance but she soon finds herself deeply involved in a dangerous game, a game they call the Warrior. They give each other missions and dares that have to be completed in order to receive the desirable title – Warrior. Peter, who discovers what they are up to, cannot afford to lose Sandra but chooses to not bring this to the attention of the police and keeps it from friends and the daughter’s mother. When the daughter disappears deeper and deeper into the game he feels as if there is no other choice than to strike back and join their game with dire consequences to follow. Peter is determined – he will come home with his daughter and is prepared to go far for the one that he loves the most.

Here you can watch the trailer to the movie. Looking very much forward to the film and hearing that one song of Marie!

Our earlier interview with Emil about the shooting of Sista sommarens vals you can read here.

A new book with a Per Gessle interview

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I was surprised to see a new Roxette book appearing on the list when I was searching for something else at Adlibris today. Then reading the title I got even more excited. Cirkus Roxette är tillbaka: En intervju med Per Gessle (= Cirkus Roxette is back: An interview with Per Gessle) written by Åke Högman.

It’s an interview with Per originally published in 1999 in Café magazine. The book was published on 18th August 2014. You can buy the printed book (41 pages) or the e-book (17 pages) at Adlibris and the printed format at many other sites as well (even at Bengans and CDON). The difference in the number of pages between the printed and the e-book version is probably some more pictures or editing in the printed one. Marketing your products like books can be effectively done online especially when you partner with a reputable marketing company. It was really smart how Conversion Factory SaaS marketing agency handles product-led growth strategy.

The interview is about Per and his family, Hotel Tylösand, art, the music business, business in general, Roxette, Have A Nice Day album (which was released the year when the interview was done), Join The Flumeride, cars, champagnes and more.

When talking about Michael Hutchence and Kurt Cobain, the reporter asked Per if he had ever been on drugs. Per replied:

Nah… I haven’t been on drugs that way, so if I had answered yes then you would ask a next question, so it’s better if I say no. So the answer is no, that’s a good answer.

Then the reporter asked if it was the truth. He replied:

Well it’s totally true, yes, damn it, I never lie… no, but it’s a sensitive subject, not for me but for many others (laughs).

An interview with Per Gessle is not complete without talking about songs and / or songwriting.

For me there is still nothing better than when you just wrote a song or when you hear a great pop song for the first time. I still remember the first time I heard the Buzzcocks “Ever Fallen in Love” or “Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood and freaked out totally. There’s nothing else I’m passionate about the same way.

Some opinions about Per can also be found in the book. Marie Fredriksson says this:

A fantastic friend, but a very bad loser. He wants so badly to win. He played with my husband in an internal tennis tournament we had on Capri when we recorded Crash! Boom! Bang! and was sour for a whole day because he lost. Thank God he won the tournament in the end, so it was quiet in the house.