Linn Berggren
Encyclopedia
Malin Sofia Katarina Berggren (born 31 October 1970) is a former member of the band Ace of Base
. Having been interested and involved in music since her childhood, she formed the band in 1987, along with her sister Jenny
, her brother Jonas
and their friend Ulf Ekberg
. Before forming Ace of Base, Malin sang in her church's choir. She was born in Gothenburg
, Sweden
.
When Ace of Base was signed to Danish
label Mega Records
in 1990, Malin, or Linn as she became known, chose to put her teaching career on hold. But while her sister Jenny has stated she always wanted to be a singer, Linn has never said anything similar. On the contrary, in 1997 Linn said: "I wanted to sing; I never wanted to be a singer".
, Waiting for Magic
) and album tracks Jenny and Linn shared leads. The focus became more equal with her younger sister, Jenny, during the release of their second album, The Bridge
.
Beginning in 1997, Linn appeared at her band's concerts only to perform in the dark or from behind objects; most often keyboards. From 1997 onwards, her appearance in the band's music video
s was much less than previous videos. Her image in the videos became at times blurred (Cruel Summer
) or almost nonexistent (Travel to Romantis
). Linn has not granted a personal television interview
since that year. The other band members, too, have been somewhat reluctant to explain what has happened to Ace of Base's former lead singer. Linn frequently avoids camera
s.
The band's management and record companies have explained Linn's odd behavior inconsistently over the years. In 1997, when Linn did not perform at the World Music Awards
, Claes Cornelius at Mega Records said it was because she did not wish to wear the heavy make-up the performance would have required. The band performed "Ravine" with Linn pretending to play keyboards
in the far background of the stage. In 1998 when Linn walked off the set of the "Cruel Summer" video in Rome
, her manager said it was because she did not wish to appear in the foreground of the video. Director Nigel Dick later revealed she would not have appeared at all, were it not for his insistence. As a result, Jenny performed both her own and Linn's parts in the video. Bravo
magazine claimed later that year that Linn was seriously ill, a claim which appeared to be true, based on Linn's odd, shaking appearance on Germany's television
spot The Dome
, and photos appearing in Bravo. Ulf Ekberg once claimed Linn had a "camera phobia", but other sources have cited her long-time fear of flying as the reason for her absence at the band's concerts. However, Linn also did not appear at events in Gothenburg and Copenhagen
, where she would not have had to fly. The members of the band have stated that she has always been a shy and retiring person and was happy to let Jenny lead the band, although a knife attack on Jenny and her mother in 1994 was also said to be in part responsible for her reluctance to appear in public. The attacker was a German girl, later arrested, who claimed to be targeting Linn.
In Linn's last personal television interview, from 1998, she stated her wish to simply remain in the background, and the eight videos filmed after this interview have mostly complied with her wishes. Other promotional materials, such as album
covers and inserts, also feature blurred, unsmiling, distinctly unhappy photographs of her. The Flowers
album uses the infamous 'blue lines' photograph, where Linn's unhappy image is bizarrely hidden behind the booklet's blue line design. Linn granted one final radio interview on Mix FM in Lebanon
in 1998, where she talked about new album plans and sang All That She Wants
a capella.
Linn has written a number of songs, some of which have been released as Ace of Base songs, and some of which have never been released to the public. During the mid-1990s, Linn wrote and produced several songs, among them "Just 'N' Image", "Whispers in Blindness", and "Strange Ways" for the band's The Bridge
album. Some fans believe Linn's odd behavior is explained in the lyrics of "Strange Ways".
In the spring of 2005, interviews with Linn's sister Jenny seemed to indicate Linn's desire to return to the spotlight again, but Linn still remained hidden from the public and has not granted an interview with any news agency or media organization since the release of the "Our Story" documentary in 1998. The public has not caught a glimpse of her in several years. Her last public appearance was during the promotion of the Da Capo album in 2002, where she showed up to a German television performance and mimed playing the keyboards in the background. A fan snapped a picture of a calm, smiling Linn outside the studio. Her final appearance with Ace of Base was in the Unspeakable
music video which was filmed in December 2002.
In October and November 2005, the band made appearances at a series of fifteen concerts at the Night of the Proms in Belgium
; as usual, Linn was unable to attend, and only Jonas, Ulf, and Jenny made appearances at these concerts.
In 2006, it was mentioned that Ace of Base had recorded 6 new songs featuring vocals by both Malin and Jenny. In 2007, Linn provided backing vocals on the track "High Life" in Jenny's secondary band Arose.
magazine.
songs except:
tracks:
tracks:
Ace of Base
Ace of Base is a pop band based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its original lineup consisted of Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg, and three siblings, Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Malin "Linn" Berggren and Jenny Berggren...
. Having been interested and involved in music since her childhood, she formed the band in 1987, along with her sister Jenny
Jenny Berggren
Jenny Cecilia Berggren is a Swedish singer and former lead singer in the Swedish pop band Ace of Base. Since 1995, she has also been writing songs and performing solo. In 2010 she released her debut album My Story.-Early life:...
, her brother Jonas
Jonas Berggren
Jonas Berggren, a.k.a. Joker , is a Swedish musician. He started writing songs when he was seven, and continues to write for the Swedish band Ace of Base, as well as other bands....
and their friend Ulf Ekberg
Ulf Ekberg
Ulf Gunnar Ekberg , a.k.a. "Buddha", along with the three siblings of Jonas Berggren , Linn Berggren, and Jenny Berggren, is a founding member of the Swedish pop group Ace of Base.-Life and career:...
. Before forming Ace of Base, Malin sang in her church's choir. She was born in Gothenburg
Gothenburg
Gothenburg is the second-largest city in Sweden and the fifth-largest in the Nordic countries. Situated on the west coast of Sweden, the city proper has a population of 519,399, with 549,839 in the urban area and total of 937,015 inhabitants in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
.
When Ace of Base was signed to Danish
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
label Mega Records
Mega Records
Mega Records was a Nashville, Tennessee-based music label that released albums by bands such as Apollo 100 and country and western singer Sammi Smith, as early as the early 1970s...
in 1990, Malin, or Linn as she became known, chose to put her teaching career on hold. But while her sister Jenny has stated she always wanted to be a singer, Linn has never said anything similar. On the contrary, in 1997 Linn said: "I wanted to sing; I never wanted to be a singer".
Linn's role in Ace of Base
During the promotion for Ace Of Base's first album, Linn was the principal lead vocalist for the majority of the singles and was generally the main focus in the videos, although on some singles (The SignThe Sign (song)
"The Sign" is a 1993 dance-pop song by the Swedish band Ace of Base. The song was an international hit, reaching Number two in the United Kingdom and spending six non-consecutive weeks as number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States...
, Waiting for Magic
Waiting for Magic
"Waiting for Magic" is a single released by Swedish pop group Ace of Base from their debut album, Happy Nation.The single reached the top 10 in Sweden and Denmark in 1993, but was also released in The Netherlands.-Lyrics:...
) and album tracks Jenny and Linn shared leads. The focus became more equal with her younger sister, Jenny, during the release of their second album, The Bridge
The Bridge (Ace of Base album)
-Japan:# "Beautiful Life"# "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry"# "Lucky Love "# "Edge of Heaven"# "Strange Ways"# "Ravine"# "Perfect World"# "Angel Eyes"# "My Déjà Vu"# "You and I"# "Wave Wet Sand"# "Que Sera"# "Just 'N' Image"...
.
Beginning in 1997, Linn appeared at her band's concerts only to perform in the dark or from behind objects; most often keyboards. From 1997 onwards, her appearance in the band's music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s was much less than previous videos. Her image in the videos became at times blurred (Cruel Summer
Cruel Summer
"Cruel Summer" is a pop song originally written and performed by Bananarama that was a top ten hit in Britain in 1983. Singer Sara Dallin said the song "played on the darker side : it looked at the oppressive heat, the misery of wanting to be with someone as the summer ticked by...
) or almost nonexistent (Travel to Romantis
Travel to Romantis
"Travel to Romantis" was the third single from Flowers, an album by Swedish pop band Ace of Base. The song was released on November 16, 1998 in Germany and Scandinavia and followed the singles "Life Is a Flower" and "Cruel Summer".-Music Video:...
). Linn has not granted a personal television interview
Interview
An interview is a conversation between two people where questions are asked by the interviewer to obtain information from the interviewee.- Interview as a Method for Qualitative Research:"Definition" -...
since that year. The other band members, too, have been somewhat reluctant to explain what has happened to Ace of Base's former lead singer. Linn frequently avoids camera
Camera
A camera is a device that records and stores images. These images may be still photographs or moving images such as videos or movies. The term camera comes from the camera obscura , an early mechanism for projecting images...
s.
The band's management and record companies have explained Linn's odd behavior inconsistently over the years. In 1997, when Linn did not perform at the World Music Awards
World Music Awards
The World Music Awards is an international awards show founded in 1989 that annually honors recording artists based on worldwide sales figures provided by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry . John Martinotti is an executive producer and co-founder of the show...
, Claes Cornelius at Mega Records said it was because she did not wish to wear the heavy make-up the performance would have required. The band performed "Ravine" with Linn pretending to play keyboards
Keyboard instrument
A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
in the far background of the stage. In 1998 when Linn walked off the set of the "Cruel Summer" video in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, her manager said it was because she did not wish to appear in the foreground of the video. Director Nigel Dick later revealed she would not have appeared at all, were it not for his insistence. As a result, Jenny performed both her own and Linn's parts in the video. Bravo
Bravo (magazine)
Bravo is the largest teen magazine within the German-language sphere. The first issue was published in 1956, subtitled as "the magazine for film and television" . Marilyn Monroe's portrait graced the first published issue, the never-published dummy issue cover displayed Elvis Presley.-History:The...
magazine claimed later that year that Linn was seriously ill, a claim which appeared to be true, based on Linn's odd, shaking appearance on Germany's television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
spot The Dome
The Dome
The Dome commonly refers to:*Millennium Dome, a former Millennium exhibition venue in London, England, now redeveloped as The O2 entertainment venue*Louisiana Superdome, home of the New Orleans Saints american football team*Hubert H...
, and photos appearing in Bravo. Ulf Ekberg once claimed Linn had a "camera phobia", but other sources have cited her long-time fear of flying as the reason for her absence at the band's concerts. However, Linn also did not appear at events in Gothenburg and Copenhagen
Copenhagen
Copenhagen is the capital and largest city of Denmark, with an urban population of 1,199,224 and a metropolitan population of 1,930,260 . With the completion of the transnational Øresund Bridge in 2000, Copenhagen has become the centre of the increasingly integrating Øresund Region...
, where she would not have had to fly. The members of the band have stated that she has always been a shy and retiring person and was happy to let Jenny lead the band, although a knife attack on Jenny and her mother in 1994 was also said to be in part responsible for her reluctance to appear in public. The attacker was a German girl, later arrested, who claimed to be targeting Linn.
In Linn's last personal television interview, from 1998, she stated her wish to simply remain in the background, and the eight videos filmed after this interview have mostly complied with her wishes. Other promotional materials, such as album
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
covers and inserts, also feature blurred, unsmiling, distinctly unhappy photographs of her. The Flowers
Flowers (Ace of Base album)
A re-release of the record in UK saw "Cecilia" replaced with "Cecilia " and "Cruel Summer " replaced with "Everytime It Rains"-Australian release:#"Cruel Summer "#"Donnie "...
album uses the infamous 'blue lines' photograph, where Linn's unhappy image is bizarrely hidden behind the booklet's blue line design. Linn granted one final radio interview on Mix FM in Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
in 1998, where she talked about new album plans and sang All That She Wants
All That She Wants
"All That She Wants" is a hit single of Swedish pop group Ace of Base. The song was produced by Denniz Pop. In early 1993, the song reached the top of the charts in many countries, including Denmark, the United Kingdom and Australia. The single was certified Platinum in the United States, where it...
a capella.
Linn has written a number of songs, some of which have been released as Ace of Base songs, and some of which have never been released to the public. During the mid-1990s, Linn wrote and produced several songs, among them "Just 'N' Image", "Whispers in Blindness", and "Strange Ways" for the band's The Bridge
The Bridge (Ace of Base album)
-Japan:# "Beautiful Life"# "Never Gonna Say I'm Sorry"# "Lucky Love "# "Edge of Heaven"# "Strange Ways"# "Ravine"# "Perfect World"# "Angel Eyes"# "My Déjà Vu"# "You and I"# "Wave Wet Sand"# "Que Sera"# "Just 'N' Image"...
album. Some fans believe Linn's odd behavior is explained in the lyrics of "Strange Ways".
In the spring of 2005, interviews with Linn's sister Jenny seemed to indicate Linn's desire to return to the spotlight again, but Linn still remained hidden from the public and has not granted an interview with any news agency or media organization since the release of the "Our Story" documentary in 1998. The public has not caught a glimpse of her in several years. Her last public appearance was during the promotion of the Da Capo album in 2002, where she showed up to a German television performance and mimed playing the keyboards in the background. A fan snapped a picture of a calm, smiling Linn outside the studio. Her final appearance with Ace of Base was in the Unspeakable
Unspeakable (song)
"Unspeakable" is a single from Ace of Base's 2002 album Da Capo.-Music Video:A music video was produced to promote the single. The video was directed by Daniel Borjesson...
music video which was filmed in December 2002.
In October and November 2005, the band made appearances at a series of fifteen concerts at the Night of the Proms in Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
; as usual, Linn was unable to attend, and only Jonas, Ulf, and Jenny made appearances at these concerts.
In 2006, it was mentioned that Ace of Base had recorded 6 new songs featuring vocals by both Malin and Jenny. In 2007, Linn provided backing vocals on the track "High Life" in Jenny's secondary band Arose.
Departure
According to an interview given by Ulf Ekberg on 20 June 2006, Malin returned to the University and would record vocals on the new band's album. However, on 30 November 2007, Ulf stated in an interview that Malin Berggren had left the band and she would not be featured on the band's new album. The group had already been performing mostly without Linn as a trio for a solid decade before her departure. Linn's image has been removed from most material on the band's official website. Band-mate and sister Jenny confirmed Linn's departure in the Danish press: "She hasn't been part of Ace of Base for several years," she stated in Se & HørSe og Hør (Denmark)
Se og Hør is a Danish tabloid-magazine weekly published by Aller Press A/S.-External links:*...
magazine.
Personal
Linn is multi-lingual: her primary language is Swedish, but she speaks fluent English and German; she also speaks Spanish, Russian and French. Other details of Linn's life, such as any details of her life outside the band, are completely unknown to the general public - whereas the other band members have been open about their relationships (Jonas and Jenny are both married, each with children, and Ulf has two boys with his long-time girlfriend).Vocals
Linn has contributed vocals for all original Ace of BaseAce of Base
Ace of Base is a pop band based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its original lineup consisted of Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg, and three siblings, Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Malin "Linn" Berggren and Jenny Berggren...
songs except:
- Fashion Party (Jenny, Ulf, & Jonas)
- My Mind (Jenny & Ulf)
- Dimension of Depth (Instrumental)
- Ravine (Jenny)
- Experience Pearls (Jenny)
- Wave Wet Sand (Jenny)
- Mercy Mercy (Jenny)
- I Pray (Jenny & Ulf)
- Donnie (US Version) (Jenny)
- Don't Go Away (Jenny)
- Unspeakable (Jenny)
- Remember the Words (Jenny)
- World Down Under (Jenny)
- Wonderful Life (Jenny)
- Show Me Love (Jenny)
Song writing
Linn's writing credits for Ace of BaseAce of Base
Ace of Base is a pop band based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its original lineup consisted of Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg, and three siblings, Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Malin "Linn" Berggren and Jenny Berggren...
tracks:
- Hear Me Calling (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
- Strange Ways
- Whispers In Blindness (the "Dr. X-Ray" credited in this song, and whom Linn thanks in the acknowledgments for The Bridge, was her father, Göran Berggren, who played flute for the song)
- Just N Image
- Lapponia (demo)
- Love in December (with Jonas & Jenny Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
- Beautiful Morning (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren)
- Change With the Light (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren and Ulf Ekberg)
- What's the Name of the Game (with Jenny & Jonas Berggren, Harry Sommerdahl, and Jonas von der Burg)
Song production
Linn's production credits for Ace of BaseAce of Base
Ace of Base is a pop band based in Gothenburg, Sweden. Its original lineup consisted of Ulf "Buddha" Ekberg, and three siblings, Jonas "Joker" Berggren, Malin "Linn" Berggren and Jenny Berggren...
tracks:
- Strange Ways
- Whispers In Blindness
- Just N Image
- Lapponia
Other
- Performed at Princess VictoriaVictoria, Crown Princess of SwedenVictoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland is the heiress-apparent to the Swedish throne. If she ascends to the throne as expected, she will be Sweden's fourth queen regnant .-Early life:...
's 20th birthday on July 14, 1997.
External links
- Ace of Base official website
- AceIsland Ace of Base website