Kristening a debut album
Starting their third concert series Hauslaus in September, Reykjavík Brewing Company’s venue Tónabíó shifts its focus to platforming upbeat and dance music. On September 13, newcomer Kris premieres her forthcoming EP what’s past.
Recently celebrating the release of her second single, Kristrún Jóhannesdóttir — Kris — seems to spring into the Reykjavík music scene as a fully formed artist. With two tracks on her resume, Kris pursues RnB-inspired music with effortless proficiency.
Kris has a varied musical background stretching from North Iceland, Reykjavík, and New York. Growing up in Eyjafjarðarsveit in North Iceland, Kris was quick to move around. First to Reykjavík, to work at the eternally cool vintage shop Spútnik, then to New York, to study musical theatre performance at the American Musical and Drama Academy.
“After school, I started working for Sony as a songwriter,” Kris starts to explain her background (like a proper Akureyringur, she accents her ts and ks). Continuing her songwriting career, Kris became involved with the Icelandic preliminary Eurovision competition Söngvakeppnin alongside her producer Jóhannes Ágúst.
But Kris wanted to do more with her songwriting, ultimately starting work on her own material in New York. “I moved back home in 2025 to continue working on this album, but I always had one foot in New York and frequently travelled between places,” she recounts.
Now sharing the outcome of her labour piece by piece, Kris’s EP — to be released in late October — is a promising collection of excellently crafted pop music. Her two singles instill an air of Ariana Grande’s thank u, next, as suave drums and funky guitar licks support Kris’s grappling melodies.
Music for car stereos
Inspired by contemporary artists like SZA, Olivia Dean, and Ariana Grande, Kris carries the RnB torch previously carried by the Icelandic Una Schram, who left her solo career to found the duo Marsibil.
“I wanted to make music you could listen to in the car,” Kris describes. “Nice, vibey music with a story behind the lyrics. It creates a sense of nostalgia or a bittersweet feeling I’m looking for,” she explains. “Nostalgia is a good and bad feeling. Coming from musicals, I tend to like those who don’t have a happy ending or are a bit ambiguous,” she admits.
Similar to the majority of Icelandic youth, whose first car usually has the novel feature of a CD player, Kris was influenced by the records on repeat in her stereo. “I bought a lot of CDs when I got my first car. It was a lot of Stevie Wonder and SZA. I played Best of Stevie Wonder probably for three years straight, alongside Ariana Grande’s Sweetener and Lemonade by Beyoncé,” she continues.
Having dedicated a large portion of her academic and professional career within the confines of the theatre, Kris is well trained to compartmentalise her different songwriting projects.
“I’ve written songs for rock, rap, and all kinds of different music,” she explains, denying that musical numbers bleed into her personal songwriting process. “I’d say my studies most affect how I sing. My melodies aren’t too far off from modern musical productions but the two are still separated. It’s mostly related to diction,” she ruminates.
A double threat
Despite this being Kris’s first run as a solo artist, she is by no means a stranger to performing. Partly trained through her studies, Kris has constantly sought avenues to perform — singing at private events as well as attending acting auditions.
“When I was younger, I always thought that performers didn’t get nervous,” she says. “Now, after my studies and acquiring the experience, I think everyone gets nervous. It’s just a question of repetition,” Kris reveals.
Kris’s experiences in New York also surpassed her education and the inception of her music career. Alongside her studies, Kris worked on Broadway behind the scenes on numerous productions.
“I worked on Broadway as a stage door. I had to buzz in the right people and deliver fan letters and flowers and such to the actors,” she smiles. “But I also performed in two off-Broadway shows,” she adds.
As she prepares her forthcoming EP, Kris isn’t shy of dreaming big for the album release. “My dream release show would be at Græni Hatturinn with a whole band,” she says after a moment’s pause, referencing the Akureyri venue staple. “I know a lot of people in Akureyri, so I think it’s realistic.”
Kris premieres her debut album what’s past at the Hauslaus series in Tónabíó on Saturday, September 13. Admission is free, and every Hauslaus show starts at 21:00.
“Caught in the middle” and “friends?” are available to listen on streaming services. For more updates on upcoming releases, follow Kris on Instagram, @kristrunjoh.
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