“I really hope the listeners get the feeling of being in the crowded Pride parade, dancing and waving our glorious flag surrounded by colourful people and atmosphere,” Margrét Rán says of “Gleðivíma,” the song she wrote for this year’s Reykjavík Pride.
Giddy and fun, the track is saturated with joy and pride. It’s also personal, with Margrét explaining that the optimistic lyrics were inspired by her own feelings upon experiencing Reykjavík Pride for the first time. “I finally felt like I was home and I belonged. This was my place and these were my people all over downtown Reykjavík — I was just feeling high with joy” she says of the experience. Though written and performed in Icelandic, the chorus translates to: “Maybe you’ll see it today / While you’re dancing and singing this song / Embrace a new world within / While waving the flag in unison.”
While all of Reykjavík will be embracing “Gleðivíma” during the annual Pride celebration, the track is also laying the foundation for Margrét Rán’s solo project RÁN. “I must admit it’s a bit scary to make music independently, because I’ve always been in bands,” she confesses, referencing her history in legendary projects GusGus and Vök. “I really have to trust my gut and my ears. But I love daring myself, so this is good for me.”
Proud viking
Striking, the single’s cover depicts Margrét donning silver armour as a new statue in place of Ingólfur Arnarson overlooking Arnarhóll. Reykjavík’s central grassy hill is the ending point of the parade each year, so the likeness of the Viking-era founder of Reykjavík has become a fixture of Pride.
“I wanted to have fun with this project, so the cover needs to be fun too, right?” she declares. “I had an idea to wear a silver full body armour and the flag by my side, kind of Joan of the Arc vibes, but how to make that look epic?” Then, her best friend and collaborator Ólafur Alexander had the idea to impose her face onto Ingólfur Arnarson, and with the help of Strik Studio and photographer Elisabet Blöndal, the concept came to life. “I’m so happy with it!” she gushes.
Feeling butterflies
About two minutes into the song, another familiar voice emerges — that of national treasure and Pride staple Páll Óskar. “When I started writing the song my mind was always, ‘damn I really think Páll Óskar could sing this chorus!’” Margrét admits. “When I went to my first Reykjavík Pride 17 years ago, the song ‘International’ by Páll Óskar was playing all over the city and that song is my ‘coming out’ song. I always get little butterflies when I hear it.”
“Gleðivíma” is the start of something new and exciting for RÁN. “My inspirations are all over the place, mainly dance and electronic music at the moment,” she explains, “I’m not planning to do an album yet, but I will be releasing singles in the fall or winter.”
For unabashed fun from a tenet of the music scene, be sure to keep RÁN on your radar and listen to “Gleðivíma,” which is out now.
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