When I was one and a half years old my family moved to Canada for work. When we moved back to Norway, I started in an international school, which I continued in until university. I therefore, in some ways, feel quite bilingual. Depending on what I am speaking, I will also think in that language. Therefore, it felt quite natural for me to make my music in English. Nevertheless, whenever I showed my music to Norwegian listeners, I would often receive a similar response: “Wow, that sounds so cool, but it would be even cooler in Norwegian,” or, “That actually sounds good, but why don’t you do it in Norwegian?”.
To me, the answer to this question initially seemed quite simple. I feel I am just as articulate in Norwegian as in English, but English simply has a larger outreach for my music. However, lately, I have been questioning whether it is really that simple. Is there something deeper, related to my creative process, that could change when changing the language?
For the most part I grew up in Norway, thus, perhaps there are things I can articulate in Norwegian that I cannot in English. Is there something deeper that could change when switching languages? Will changing the language in my lyrics change the feel, narrative and message of my songs? Will my music be perceived differently with different languages?
