A warm welcome to Agnetha Fältskog! Hi. Welcome. Thank you. -It's been a while.
-Yes. This is sort of special. Sitting here
with posters of two of my idols- -from my youth. I wasn't referring to you. But Mats Wilander and ABBA were
up on many a kid's wall. Have you followed Wilander's career? Yes, I have. Well, not really followed -
but I certainly know of him. And you've done a fantastic job. I fell in love with Agnetha's voice
after Ulf Lundell. You sang
"Snön Faller Och Vi Med Den". -I can't believe you know that.
-I do. Not many people know that. Now that you've recorded a new album,
not just a single- -I've been told you took singing
lessons. How many did you need? Two. I didn't need more than that. -It worked.
-Yes. It's the breathing. It has to be taken
from underneath, from the stomach. Does this mean that you don't sing
in your everyday life? Well, I made my last record
nine years ago. Yes, but I sing at home.
Yes, I do, sometimes. Where? In the shower? -I sing to my dog.
-Do you have a dog too? -Yes. You have several, right?
-Two. Don't you sing to them?
Animals love it when you sing to them. Maybe I should. Most people know you as a vocalist. But you're also a very good
and respected song writer. You were a song writer
with your own career before ABBA. Yes. I used to be more productive
back then. -You've written one song on your new...
-Yes. It may not seem like a lot... But I'm not the kind of song writer
who's always writing songs- -like Jörgen Elofsson,
who's written most of the songs. I'll write a song now and then. I wanted
to contribute with at least one song. If I could. When I have some time off
I want spend it with my kids... -...grandkids and my dogs.
-And that's your life. Yes. Sometimes me and the grandkids
will play the piano together. But that's about it. Maybe it's the same
for you with your tennis... He's driving around in his camper. That's not so bad. It's a nice idea.
It's a life of freedom and things. -Would you like to do that?
-Yes. With Mats. I would imagine.
He's open to the suggestion. He'll kick his buddy out of the camper. He's starting it now. But listen... You've celebrated silence a lot. -You appreciate silence.
-I do. I felt there'd been so many different
sounds in my head- -too many songs and too many lyrics. I feel there are so many sounds
going on simultaneously nowadays. -Does this stress you out?
-Yes. I get stressed when there is more than
one sound going on at the same time. If I'm with my dogs and they're barking
and I'm listening to music. Do you turn off the music or the dogs? It's easier to turn the music off. Now, the ABBA museum will have
its opening in May in Stockholm. -That's correct.
-You should come and visit it. It's a fantastic collection
of ABBA memorabilia. -Will you be there for the opening?
-I won't be there. I'll be in England. In London, I think. I'll spend ten days
there for the release of my CD. But you will visit the ABBA museum,
won't you? Absolutely. And I am working on it. I've recorded some material,
and I have donated some things. Isn't this the perfect occasion
for a clean-up at home? And get rid of... Like ants on a tree... -It's a nice way of...
-Absolutely. I've never been into having my walls
covered with gold records and things. I'm a bit modest. I don't want to flaunt it. It's... I feel relieved now, because there's a
place where I can leave it all behind. A place where it will be kept safe. What did you donate? Gold records, clothes and things. When you look at Björn and Benny -
they've both been guests here. And now you're here. The three of you
have this thing in common... -You're ordinary.
-We are. Is Frida just as ordinary
as the rest of you? Yes, I think so. -All four of you are equally ordinary?
-Sure. Just as boring. If we go back in time,
was one of you the boss? We were all bosses.
We were all very strong people. Strong-willed people. That's probably
why things turned out so great. -Who would be the first to yield?
-Not me, that's for sure. We had such a nice time,
because we were all so talented. We could all of us contribute
with our own specific thing. I had a lot of ideas- -for the choirs and details
that would liven up the song. A little gimmick in every song.
So, that was my contribution. People've said: "Why didn't you
write more ABBA songs?" There were phases when I was
so relieved to be back home. We travelled so much.
I had two small children at home. And when I got home I just felt:
"I want to take care of this." I went from the luxury suite to the
dishpan, sort of. And it felt so great. You were a really nice band. -No one trashed hotel rooms or the tv:s.
-Well... Did anyone ever empty the mini-bar- -or order too much from room-service
or... -Sometimes.
-Who? It wasn't us - it was the band. We weren't necessarily as nice
as one might think. -In what way?
-We had our... It was hard being out
on this gigantic tour- -and do all these concerts. And so,
naturally, there was some friction. Internally. Exactly. Looking back on your ABBA days, do you
regret not having been more crazy? -You could do whatever you wanted.
-And we did, a bit. -Really?
-No. We had such a tight schedule. -You're not like Keith Richards.
-No, I'm not. And neither are Björn and Benny. Did you ever reach that point
where you felt that enough's enough? -Was there ever such a point for you?
-I did go through some hard times. And I felt I had to withdraw a bit. This was before my 50th birthday.
I felt that time was passing so fast. And turning 50 is such a milestone. So, for a couple of years I had the
sensation of having achieved so much. -I needed to focus on me.
-You were done with it all. I thought the record I'd made
would be my last. But I don't like to close any doors. If anything interesting shows up
I'll listen. And when I heard those first couple
of songs, I felt: "No. I can't refuse this.
I have to do this." Would it be correct to say
that you're an anxious person? Yes. I am. -In what way?
-I'm anxious, worried. A bit too much. But the positive thing is that it gives
me a lot to offer - I'm emotional- -in my songs. So, that's positive. I wouldn't mind working in the studio
only. I have a lot to offer there. But I know that when you make a new
record there's a lot attached to it. -You have to talk to people like me.
-Yes. And that's very nice. -It's part of the whole thing.
-Do you dread meeting the world? Yes, always. So, I focus, but keep feeling:
"Oh, dear, will I be able to do this?" "I'll sit there and it's such
a great show..." That's the way it is. You also had posters of Agnetha,
didn't you? -That answered your question, didn't it?
-How sweet. We'd have ABBA-games.
It was our favourite game. We didn't care much for the boys,
just the girls. There'd be a blonde section
and a dark section. -So, you were Frida, then?
-Yes. There was nothing you could do about it,
but I wanted to be you. I would I've preferred being you.
You were the prettiest. But... Yeah, and then we'd play ABBA and
dance and sing- -while the others'd be waiting
their turn. It was a strange game. But we did this every day for years. -For years?
-Yes. For years. So, in a way, I'm sitting here
with Frida and Agnetha? Who's Björn and who's Benny? Your new album will be out soon.
The title is "A". -Yes - "A".
-Would that be the first "A" in "ABBA"? Sure. Or "A" as in "Agnetha". Had you decided on who the first "a" was
and who the last one was? -No. We never talked about that.
-Shouldn't you have that discussion? -You should have it now.
-We'll keep that for the museum. I've only heard a bit, but, as far
as I can tell, most of the record- -is about love. That's often how it turns out. You've sung about love your whole life.
Yes, you have. -Do you understand love better now?
-No. Do you? -I'm sorry.
-It's a difficult question. And it's so powerful. That's why almost
any song's about love. Because it's so powerful.
And I think that's so cool. I wrote one of the songs myself. I
thought I would turn it into a lullaby- -for children,
but that's not what happened. I had some ideas for the lyrics
and told Jörgen: "No. This is not working. We'll have to
turn it into a love-song as well." It's difficult to write something else. Do you feel that love has- -mostly disappointed you
or made you happy? That's a difficult and private question,
but... It comes and goes. -Do you still believe in love?
-Yes. -It was fantastic having you here.
-Thank you. Benny Andersson will be here. Mama
Skarsgård will tell her dark story. And the Norwegian terrorist's defense
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