Stopping, Reflecting and Starting Again — Bríet on her process to date and what comes next

Words: Lilja Bragadóttir & Esja Fulton Aðalsteinsdóttir

On a drizzly day in Reykjavík, Lilja and Esja sat in the glass atrium in the building where the Grapevine is located and waited patiently for the one and only Bríet to arrive for an interview.

The 24-year-old singer has taken Iceland by storm over the past few years, releasing her breakout album Kveðja, Bríet in 2020, picking up a bunch of Grapevine Music Awards and Icelandic Music Awards, and establishing herself as an icon. Her talent — and all round cool persona — hasn’t gone unnoticed by these young journalists, who have seen her perform over the years at their after school programme, in a stripped down concert in Eyrarbakki, and at an Iceland Airwaves off-venue performance, to name a few.

Photo by Art Bicnick

When Bríet swept into the building dressed as if she were ready to take the stage, it was time for the young journalists to get to work.

What inspires you to make music?

I get this question a lot and sometimes I really have to think about it a lot because there is no one thing — there are so many things. It can just be a conversation like just the three of us talking now and I hear something beautiful that you say that makes me want to write about. It can be some new feeling or some new experience that can inspire me. So everything in the environment gives me inspiration.

What is your favourite song apart from your songs?

Right now it’s a song by Bob Dylan called “Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right.”

What is your favourite song you made?

I go back and forth, depending on how I feel. But right now it’s “Sólblóm.”

“It can just be a conversation like just the three of us talking now and I hear something beautiful that you say that makes me want to write about.”

You won some awards recently, what were they?

I won Singer of the Year, Performer of the Year and Song of the Year at the Hlustendaverðlaunin (Listener’s Choice Awards).

What was the hardest song to write?

When it gets difficult to write songs, I stop working on it and start working on something new — and it happens in every song. I go and make a new song and then I come back to the old one and then I’m inspired again to finish it.

It was maybe a bit difficult to write “Fimm” because it started a little differently. I thought it was going to be more of a dance song but then it started calling for a slower tempo so it was a bit difficult to finish it.

Do you play any instruments?

Yes, I play guitar and piano.

What is your favourite colour?

White.

Photo by Art Bicnick

What would you be if you weren’t a singer?

I would be another kind of artist, like a painter or an actress.

What is your favourite food?

Sushi.

What is your favourite sport?

I really enjoy watching handball, but if I were playing myself, then I don’t know. I think handball is very fun to watch, it’s the most fun sport.

Are you working on any new music?

Yes! Now I’m trying to compose in English and I’m going to make songs or an album or something. I don’t really know when it will be released but I’m currently writing full time.