IN CONVERSATION
WITH: MØ
“I also think that getting carried away with numbers can be bad for the soul. At least my soul.” The Danish singer MØ is back with her new album ‘Plæygirl’, for which she liberated herself from expectations and pressure. After writing the previous album ‘Motordrome’ under intense emotional conditions and during a period of extreme stress, MØ wanted to liberate herself from this emotional turmoil. The result is the new album ‘Plæygirl’. It is an album that balances perfectly between light and darkness, with tracks that are as fun and free as they are honest. With Copypaste, MØ discussed the importance of reinvention and letting go of pressure as an artist, the process of producing her new album, and her thoughts about the current pop music industry.
graphic design: Sandro Rybak @sandroryry text & interview: @martinmanuelry
Your new album ‘Plæygirl’ is both a reintroduction and a reinvention. You said that the music on the album makes you feel free and represents a kind of personal liberation. Could you tell us a little more about why you felt the need to reinvent yourself after your previous album ‘Motordrome’?
I think need for reinvention started back in 2016, after the major succes of Lean On with Major Lazer. I came from a more alternative background, but then all of a sudden I was on a huge mainstream hit being played all over the globe! It has taken me years to land on my feet and find a lane that feels right, which embraces all the different musical aspects which I love and that have formed my career. Not that anything is ever solid - my creative core is in constant motion - but what I've learned over the years, and what this album represent to me, is to believe in your own vision, find a small solid team with which you can go deep, and then, try to have fun while you do so!!
The new album was created differently to your previous one, for example you produced it with just one single producer. Could you talk us through the creative process behind ‘Plæygirl’ and how it was different to the previous ones?
I worked on this album with my exec producer Nick Sylvester - we had a bunch of different musicians contribute to the songs and the process - but you're right, Nick was my partner in crime, and I loved doing project like that. A dedicated small team. I had written a bunch of songs during 2022, and then in early 23, Nick flew in to Copenhagen from LA. We worked out of a great studio in Nørrebro called Farvemøllen for 3 weeks, and I think that was where the DNA of the album was created. We would take turns visiting each other and by Spring of 24 the album was more or less done. Some songs we would write from scratch together - like SWEET, and Knife which we wrote with Finn Keane and Madison Love as well.
You wrote the previous album ‘Motordrome’ under emotional pressure and intense emotional turmoil. Can you tell us about that time?
Yes, in 2019 I had a stress break down, followed by a vocal surgery - so when I started writing Motordrome in 2020, I was still filled up with a lot of inner noise and sadness. It was important for my recovery to write Motordrome though, since it helped me to think and say things which I needed at the time, and which was hard for me to fully connect with just by speech. That's always been the case with me - some things I just can't express unless I put rhyme and melody to it.
There were times when you felt under a lot of pressure to be successful. Would you define success differently today than you did some years ago?
I mean there's success in numbers and then there's success in (your own sense of) mastery. When you have great success in numbers, I think it can be hard to not get carried away by it, because it literally makes you rich and famous, but I also think that getting carried away with numbers can be bad for the soul. At least my soul. I find that focusing more on my own sense of mastery - meaning, basically, getting better at writing a song, going deeper in my artistic work - gives me a deeper more wholesome sense of happiness. It's not as immediate as scoring high numbers on streaming, but it lasts longer and lifts you up over time.
What are some things that are making you really happy nowadays?
Hanging out with my besties. Writing a great song. Shutting off my phone and taking a walk in nature. Watch a local band perform their ass off.
Do you feel like the music industry changed since you started your career over 10 years ago? What are some of the current artists that inspire you?
I feel like it has changed so much! I love how there's more focus on empowering voices of those who used to not be heard - there's still a way to go, but I love how this has developed for the better since I started 12 years ago. I also see how social media has changed and therefore changed the industry. It's interesting. Some artists I listen to a lot at the moment is Ethel Cain and Snow Strippers. I'm obsessed with the music but both also have have really striking visual universes, which you just wanna get lost in.
