Newkid

For Newkid, music is just as much about memory and emotion as it is about melody. From the first tentative piano chords to imagining the perfect live set.   Having carved out a distinct place in the Swedish music scene over the past decade, Newkid reflects on the different phases of his career, the personal experiences that have shaped his sound, and the evolution of his creative process. From club bangers to intimate power ballads, fatherhood and nostalgia.    In this conversation, he opens up about his current musical chapter, his visual expression, and the enduring passion that drives him to create. Here he presents a story about songs, synths, stagecraft, and the very human desire to make art that’s truly yours.   Elsa Chagot: You’ve been part of the Swedish music scene for a while now and gone through several phases – how are you feeling right now, where do you stand musically and personally?   Newkid: I’ve been around for quite a long time now. My first record came out in 2011, so quite a few years have passed, and during this time,  I went through different eras. You change as a person. There was a period when I was single and making a lot of club music, playing in clubs all the time. Then I had a period where I wrote a lot of break-up songs, because I’d just gone through a break-up myself. I also became a dad two years ago, and that’s a huge thing in life. It changes a lot. I think the music has been influenced by that in some way. An Interview with Newkid text Elsa Chagot coat FAYETTE / NORLING t-shirt Emporio Armani / Zalando jeans adidas Originals / Zalando sneakers New Balance  EC: Does it feel like you’re entering a new musical era compared to earlier chapters of your career?   Newkid: I call the new era my power ballad era. t’s a bit meta because I actually grew up with parents who listened to power ballads. When I was a kid, that’s the music they usually played at home. And now it almost feels like a full-circle moment.   The tempo is a bit slower as well. I’m not at the club anymore. I like gigs that happen earlier in the evening, where it’s not quite as intense. So in a way, life and music go hand in hand. I’m in a calmer stage right now, trying to figure out who this new version of me is. It’s still quite new.    EC: In that case, I have to ask, what is your all-time favourite power ballad song?   Newkid: Forever Young. It’s one of those songs that’s been with me since I was a kid, dancing to slow songs at school discos. It just has this incredible power – a really special kind of energy. I have so many memories in my life connected to that song that I can bring back whenever I hear it. I genuinely love it.   EC: In that case, I have to ask, what is your all-time favourite power ballad song? Newkid: Forever Young. It’s one of those songs that’s been with me since I was a kid, dancing to slow songs at school discos. It just has this incredible power – a really special kind of energy. I have so many memories in my life connected to that song that I can bring back whenever I hear it. I genuinely love it.   EC: When you create music, where does it usually start for you: with a feeling, a lyric, a melody, or something else entirely?   Newkid: Nine times out of ten, I start by writing the chords and the melody. I basically write all my songs on the piano first. It’s a very intuitive process; you sit down, and you’re feeling a certain way that day. I try not to think too much about it. If anything, I try to think as little as possible. I just play and sing and see what feels right. Something in it sort of pulls you in a certain direction, and you realise, okay, this is the path to follow.   Once I have the melodies and chords, I usually start figuring out the lyrics. Sometimes when you’re sort of mumbling a melody to yourself, a random word slips out, and occasionally I’ll latch onto one of those words and start building from there. I’ll ask myself: what does this song feel like, even before there are any real lyrics?  coat and jumper BOSS necklace with rose KSV Jewellery  cross necklace Talent’s own  earstud worn throughout  Talent’s own  coat FAYETTE / NORLING denim jacket MADH  jeans Levi’s sneakers New Balance EC: What are you working on right now, and what can you tell us about the project and about your release, Hurricane?  Newkid: Right now, I’m working on the songs that will be released in the autumn; the whole project will have ten tracks in total. That’s really why I’m in the studio at the moment. I’m here about three days a week. One day a week, I focus on content, which has become such a huge part of being an artist now. In recent years, it’s almost like you have to create content all the time alongside the music. We’ve started planning the summer tour and getting ready to go out and play live. I often take a song and look at it from a live perspective – if it isn’t naturally a “live-friendly” track, I think about how I can adapt it so it works on stage. How can I weave it into a set that makes sense for the era I’m in? EC: What makes a song more live-friendly, and what does meeting your audience live mean to you? Newkid: That’s a good question. Sometimes you’re in the studio, and you just think, “This is going to be amazing live.” top Brixtol Textiles coat ADNYM shirt ADNYM  trousers adidas