M2M (band)
Encyclopedia
M2M was a pop music
duo formed by two Norwegians, Marion Elise Raven
and Marit Elisabeth Larsen
. They released three albums under Atlantic Records
and Warner Music: Shades of Purple
, The Big Room
, and The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M
, a greatest hits
album released by their record label after they disbanded.
in the district east of Oslo
. They had known each other since they were five. After starting to make their own songs, they were signed in 1998 to Atlantic Records. Their name "M2M" was chosen from a contest they held for fans to give a name for their band, as they had previously always been known as Marion & Marit. The group's first single, "Don't Say You Love Me", appeared in 1999, and was featured on the soundtrack of Pokémon: The First Movie
(albeit with a small edit to the lyrics). The film helped the song to reach success worldwide, including peaking at No. 16 in the UK Singles Chart
, their only hit in the UK
. The duo released their first album, Shades of Purple, in 2000, which debuted at number one in Norway and several Asia
n countries and in the Top 40 in most other countries. In September that year, they toured with Hanson
, performing as the boys' opening act. Earlier in the year, they performed a concert special at Epcot
in Walt Disney World, broadcast on April 29, 2000, under the name "M2M and BBMak
in Concert", performing six songs with breaks in between of them walking around the park and seeing the sites.
Four more singles were released from the album: "Mirror Mirror", "The Day You Went Away", "Pretty Boy" and "Everything You Do". They were made popular in Asia; as well as they released a song sung in Mandarin, "Pretty Boy". However, they did not record a Mandarin version of their hit "The Day You Went Away", and Taiwan
ese singer Cyndi Wang
recorded her own version.
In 2002, the duo returned with a more mature, less pop-oriented sound with their second album, The Big Room
. In two years, their voices had changed, especially Raven's. The first single from the album was "Everything" followed by "What You Do About Me". They did not release a third single, even though "Don't" was released to U.S. and Latin America's radio stations and "Wanna Be Where You Are" was released in the Philippines. The promotion for their second record included TV appearances that year, such as a spot on the WB's Dawson's Creek
, appearing in the 100th episode of the show towards the end of its fifth year. That year, they also took part in the Pantene Pro-Voice concert series that aired on the now defunct MuchMusic USA. While on tour with Jewel
, M2M was dropped by Atlantic Records, who cited a lack of record sales, although the album did do well in Norway
, Asia
and Australia
.
being a more critically acclaimed record than its predecessor, it was less commercially successful. M2M saw its record company support wane. As the result of disappointing record sales, M2M was pulled in the middle of Jewel's This Way tour. Shortly after the Jewel tour, M2M disbanded. Marion Raven was immediately signed to a solo record contract. Marit Larsen went to finish high school.
In October 2004, Larsen performed live on NRK radio. Her debut solo album, Under the Surface
went platinum
in Norway.
In 2005, Raven debuted three songs on NRK. In support of her new solo record, she later toured Japan, South America, and Europe. The album was only released in Asia, Scandinavia and Mexico.
The two singers are currently performing as solo artists, going by their own names.
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
duo formed by two Norwegians, Marion Elise Raven
Marion Raven
Marion Elise Ravn, born 25 May 1984 in Lørenskog, Norway, is a Norwegian singer-songwriter, and former child actress. Her surname is of Norse origin, with Ravn meaning Raven, which she adopted as her stage name Marion Raven as well as her trademark raven logo. She was one-half of the now defunct...
and Marit Elisabeth Larsen
Marit Larsen
Marit Elisabeth Larsen is a Norwegian singer and songwriter.She began playing violins at age of 5,and played it until the age of 8. She gained international fame during her teenage years as a member of the pop duo M2M with childhood friend Marion Raven. More recently she has pursued her own music...
. They released three albums under Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records
Atlantic Records is an American record label best known for its many recordings of rhythm and blues, rock and roll, and jazz...
and Warner Music: Shades of Purple
Shades of Purple
-Singles:# "Don't Say You Love Me" # "Mirror Mirror" # "The Day You Went Away"# "Pretty Boy"# "Girl in Your Dreams"# "Everything You Do"...
, The Big Room
The Big Room
The Big Room is the second and final studio album by Norwegian pop music duo M2M.The album, despite a positive response from music critics and huge success in Asia, did not perform as well as their previous album Shades of Purple and failed to chart in the United States...
, and The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M
The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M
The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M is the last album and greatest hits compilation by Norwegian teen-pop band M2M, now disbanded.The compilation includes all of their singles from their two studio albums Shades of Purple and The Big Room, as well as acoustic versions of some other songs...
, a greatest hits
Greatest hits
A greatest hits album is a music compilation album of successful, previously released songs by a particular artist or band...
album released by their record label after they disbanded.
History
Raven and Larsen came from LørenskogLørenskog
is a municipality in Akershus county, Norway. It is part of the traditional region of Romerike. The administrative centre of the municipality is the village of Lørenskog. Lørenskog was separated from the municipality of Skedsmo on 1 January 1908.-Name:...
in the district east of Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
. They had known each other since they were five. After starting to make their own songs, they were signed in 1998 to Atlantic Records. Their name "M2M" was chosen from a contest they held for fans to give a name for their band, as they had previously always been known as Marion & Marit. The group's first single, "Don't Say You Love Me", appeared in 1999, and was featured on the soundtrack of Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie
Pokémon: The First Movie, originally released as , is a 1998 Japanese animated film directed by Kunihiko Yuyama, the chief director of the Pokémon television series. It is the first theatrical release in the Pokémon franchise...
(albeit with a small edit to the lyrics). The film helped the song to reach success worldwide, including peaking at No. 16 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
, their only hit in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The duo released their first album, Shades of Purple, in 2000, which debuted at number one in Norway and several Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
n countries and in the Top 40 in most other countries. In September that year, they toured with Hanson
Hanson (band)
Hanson are an American pop rock band formed in Tulsa, Oklahoma, by brothers Isaac , Taylor , and Zac Hanson . They are best known for the 1997 hit song "MMMBop" from their major label debut album Middle of Nowhere, which earned three Grammy nominations...
, performing as the boys' opening act. Earlier in the year, they performed a concert special at Epcot
Epcot
Epcot is a theme park in the Walt Disney World Resort, located near Orlando, Florida. The park is dedicated to the celebration of human achievement, namely international culture and technological innovation. The second park built at the resort, it opened on October 1, 1982 and was initially named...
in Walt Disney World, broadcast on April 29, 2000, under the name "M2M and BBMak
BBMak
BBMak were an English pop group consisting of Mark Barry, Christian Burns and Stephen McNally. Together they sold nearly three million albums and spawned two Top 10 and Top 40 singles worldwide between 1999 when the group was formed and 2003 when they eventually disbanded...
in Concert", performing six songs with breaks in between of them walking around the park and seeing the sites.
Four more singles were released from the album: "Mirror Mirror", "The Day You Went Away", "Pretty Boy" and "Everything You Do". They were made popular in Asia; as well as they released a song sung in Mandarin, "Pretty Boy". However, they did not record a Mandarin version of their hit "The Day You Went Away", and Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
ese singer Cyndi Wang
Cyndi Wang
Cyndi Wang was born on 5 September 1982. She is a Taiwanese singer and actress. Her birth name is Wáng Jūnrú .Wang has released eleven albums, nearly all of which carries her name...
recorded her own version.
In 2002, the duo returned with a more mature, less pop-oriented sound with their second album, The Big Room
The Big Room
The Big Room is the second and final studio album by Norwegian pop music duo M2M.The album, despite a positive response from music critics and huge success in Asia, did not perform as well as their previous album Shades of Purple and failed to chart in the United States...
. In two years, their voices had changed, especially Raven's. The first single from the album was "Everything" followed by "What You Do About Me". They did not release a third single, even though "Don't" was released to U.S. and Latin America's radio stations and "Wanna Be Where You Are" was released in the Philippines. The promotion for their second record included TV appearances that year, such as a spot on the WB's Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek
Dawson's Creek is an American teen drama television series which debuted on January 20, 1998, on The WB Television Network and was produced by Sony Pictures Television. The show is set in the fictional seaside town of Capeside, Massachusetts, and in Boston, Massachusetts, during the later seasons...
, appearing in the 100th episode of the show towards the end of its fifth year. That year, they also took part in the Pantene Pro-Voice concert series that aired on the now defunct MuchMusic USA. While on tour with Jewel
Jewel (singer)
Jewel Kilcher , professionally known as Jewel, is an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, actress and poet...
, M2M was dropped by Atlantic Records, who cited a lack of record sales, although the album did do well in Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
Break up
Despite The Big RoomThe Big Room
The Big Room is the second and final studio album by Norwegian pop music duo M2M.The album, despite a positive response from music critics and huge success in Asia, did not perform as well as their previous album Shades of Purple and failed to chart in the United States...
being a more critically acclaimed record than its predecessor, it was less commercially successful. M2M saw its record company support wane. As the result of disappointing record sales, M2M was pulled in the middle of Jewel's This Way tour. Shortly after the Jewel tour, M2M disbanded. Marion Raven was immediately signed to a solo record contract. Marit Larsen went to finish high school.
In October 2004, Larsen performed live on NRK radio. Her debut solo album, Under the Surface
Under the Surface
Under the Surface is the debut album from Norwegian singer-songwriter Marit Larsen which was released on March 6, 2006. All but three of the songs on the album were written solely by Marit herself. The album went gold in Norway after selling more than 20,000 copies in less than 3 weeks. The album...
went platinum
Music recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
in Norway.
In 2005, Raven debuted three songs on NRK. In support of her new solo record, she later toured Japan, South America, and Europe. The album was only released in Asia, Scandinavia and Mexico.
The two singers are currently performing as solo artists, going by their own names.
Albums
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOR VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
|||
| 2000 | Shades of Purple Shades of Purple -Singles:# "Don't Say You Love Me" # "Mirror Mirror" # "The Day You Went Away"# "Pretty Boy"# "Girl in Your Dreams"# "Everything You Do"...
|
7 | 63 | 89 |
|
| 2002 | The Big Room The Big Room The Big Room is the second and final studio album by Norwegian pop music duo M2M.The album, despite a positive response from music critics and huge success in Asia, did not perform as well as their previous album Shades of Purple and failed to chart in the United States... |
16 | 61 | — |
|
| Year | Album details | Chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales threshold) |
||
| NOR VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
US Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
|||
| 2003 | The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M The Day You Went Away: The Best of M2M is the last album and greatest hits compilation by Norwegian teen-pop band M2M, now disbanded.The compilation includes all of their singles from their two studio albums Shades of Purple and The Big Room, as well as acoustic versions of some other songs... |
— | — | — | |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
Album | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOR VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
AUS ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
FRA Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
IRE Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
NL MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
NZ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
SWE Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
SWI Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
UK UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
US Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
||||
| 1999 | "Don't Say You Love Me Don't Say You Love Me (M2M song) "Don't Say You Love Me" is a song recorded by pop band M2M in 1999. It was originally featured on the soundtrack to the movie Pokémon: The First Movie. The single had success in the United States, reaching No. 2 on US Billboard singles sales chart and reaching No. 21 on the Billboard Hot 100 and... " |
2 | 4 | 21 | 12 | 16 | 4 | 17 | 76 | 16 | 21 |
|
Shades of Purple |
| 2000 | "Mirror Mirror Mirror Mirror (M2M song) "Mirror Mirror" is a song recorded by pop band M2M. It was covered by American pop singer Taylor Horn in 2006 for her album Changes.-Track listing:US promo# "Mirror Mirror" – 3:19# "Mirror Mirror" – 3:50... " |
— | 30 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 62 |
|
|
| "Pretty Boy" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Everything You Do Everything You Do "Everything You Do" is a song recorded by pop band M2M. It peaked at No. 21 on the Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales.-Release:M2M recorded and released the original version of "Everything You Do" in 2000. The official remixes of the song were released in the same year... " |
— | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "The Day You Went Away" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Girl in Your Dreams" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 2002 | "Everything" | 6 | 27 | — | — | — | 44 | — | — | — | — | The Big Room | |
| "What You Do About Me" | — | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Don't" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| "Wanna Be Where You Are" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | |||
Awards
- M2M was nominated for the "Best Song" category and won the "Best German Group" honors at Comet 2003.
- In June 2000, M2M was named "Discovery of the Year" by the SingaporeSingaporeSingapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
Radio Association. - M2M was nominated for the "Best Group" award at the 2001 Spelleman Awards.
- M2M was nominated for the "Favorite Pop Act" at the 2002 MTV Asia music awards.
- M2M was nominated for "best international artist" at M+net awards Korea