Robyn’s Pre-White Party Interview

Robyn opens up about her upcoming White Party appearance and a growing cult of gay fans in this exclusive noiZe interview!

Written by D. Michael Taylor

Defiant. Moody. Adorable. Swedish pixie Robyn has been working hard at making great pop music for most of her life. But the last six years have been especially rewarding for her. She launched her own record label, releasing Robyn and then the groundbreaking trilogy of Body Talk mini-albums, which allowed her to keep releasing new material while touring. A Robyn show is hard to describe unless you’ve experienced the electric connection she has developed with a growing base of cult-like fans. Her shows can feel like peak hour at a great Circuit event, with ecstatic dancing and sweating — and not just on stage. Gays, girls, and everything in between seem to find something slightly magical in her music and the infectious energy she presents it with.

So when Jeffrey Sanker announced that she would appear at his Palm Springs White Party this year, it seemed like a natural choice. noiZe was thrilled to speak with Robyn about White Party, her gay fans, and her music.

noiZe: Hi Robyn! Let’s talk about White Party. The headline “Robyn performs in front of a gay audience” is a little anticlimactic since you have such an avid gay fan base already, but is this the first time you’ll be performing for a mostly gay audience?

Robyn: No. I’ve done lots of performances like this. I guess the most similar one would be G-A-Y, which is a huge gay night in London. But I’ve heard lots of things about the White Party, so I don’t think I’ve ever been at a party quite like this one before.

noiZe: Are you excited about it?

Robyn: Of course. It’s an honor.

noiZe: Do you want to do any other big events like this in the future, like a Pride festival?

Robyn: Yeah, I do Pride festivals here in Stockholm where I’m from, when I’m home and have the time. I am very aware of my gay audience. I know how invested they are in what I do. You’re very lucky as an artist to have that kind of support. At the same time, I don’t know if you agree with me, but sometimes I feel like when people talk about gay culture they assume that all gay people are the same, and I don’t assume that you love me just because you are gay. I don’t take it for granted. I try to treat it as a part of my audience that is just as vivid and dynamic as any other part of my audience.

noiZe: That was my next question actually. Your shows are a healthy mix of genders and sexualities. A lot of different people seem to be drawn to you in a very strong way. Do you think there’s a common element to the people that flock to your shows?

Robyn: Well, naturally they’re just very smart. [giggles]

noiZe: We have a theory that no one has more fun at a Robyn concert than Robyn. Do you think that’s true?

Robyn: [laughs] Yes! I hope that other people have as much fun as I do, but yeah it’s based on me amping myself up to some kind of frenzy that I think sooner or later starts affecting the audience in a similar way. I don’t know how to do it any other way. It just has to be real, you know? Otherwise it just becomes nothing.

noiZe: There does seem to be a genuine connection between you and your audience.

Robyn: Good, that means I’m doing my job.

noiZe: Do you think America is starting to open up to your electro-pop sound?

Robyn: I hope so. I don’t really understand what is tricky with my music, because I think it’s so…easy. It’s pop music! It’s very easy to emotionally connect to it, but there’s been some kind of gap between European and American musical culture and the way that we look at electronic music. Most people think of electronic music as just the super-commercial dance music, and they don’t even know that House music came out of gay culture, and it came out of a very real and authentic creative environment. In Europe, I think, whether it’s Kraftwerk or KLF or Daft Punk or any of those big electronic bands that have shaped the European club scene it is considered just as valid as anything else. That is a big difference. I think people like Lady Gaga and Katy Perry who are bringing those influences into a very commercial space have helped a lot in the States.

noiZe: You’re on the cover of Elle magazine in May for their music issue. You got top billing over some pretty big names like Beyoncé and Aretha. What was it like doing that photo shoot?

Robyn: I know! It was great. The photographer was wonderful, he had an ability to catch me while I was moving and jumping around the way I usually do. I’m bad at posing, I’m just better at being myself. So, he caught that and a lot of people don’t. I just end up looking funny. So yes. I think it’s a pretty dress, and pretty eyeliner.

noiZe: Well, the cover looks great.

Robyn: So you don’t think I look like I’m giving head? [giggles]

noiZe: I won’t lie, I’ve seen people saying that. But I still think it’s a great cover.

Robyn: So do I. [laughing]

noiZe: You left Jive Records in 2005 and started your own label, Konichiwa Records. That seems to be the best thing that ever happened to your career. Was it nervewracking to strike out on your own like that?

Robyn: Yes! But not at all in the sense that I was worried about what I was doing. I knew I was doing the right thing, and it was fun all the way through. It was really exciting to make that decision that I’m just going to put everything in one cart and just go. Because I did feel like there was no other choice. I knew I didn’t want to do it any other way. It was my last way out, so I had nothing to lose. But yes it was nervewracking in the sense that I had a lot of work to do, I did a lot of it on my own. The first time you do something it always takes more energy at first than it does later.

noiZe: There’s an intimacy to your connection with your audience, isn’t there?

Robyn: Yes. I don’t know exactly, but I think people feel that way when they listen to my music because they have a rich inner life and they have emotions that they connect to the songs and the music I make. That’s what’s so cool about making music: Once you’ve made it if the music has quality then when people start listening it takes on its own life and it becomes something that happens between both me and the listener. I hope I make music that is open enough to make people feel like they can connect to it.

Catch Robyn’s performance at White Party 2011 in Palm Springs, April 8-11, 2011. Get More Info on White Party Palm Springs HERE

Online Exclusives

Search Articles

Back Issues

Robyn’s Pre-White Party Interview

Robyn opens up about her upcoming White Party appearance and a growing cult of gay fans in this exclusive noiZe interview!

Written by D. Michael Taylor

Reader Comments