With the release of her new album, the Swedish singer-songwriter Tove Styrke reveals everything that’s going on in her head and why the pull of pop won’t be fading anytime soon

It’s hard to fend off Tove Styrke’s unique charm and insane talent for exquisite and well-made pop bangers. Since entering the music business in her teens, Styrke has continued to grow and has just released her third album, Sway, a record that means a lot to her personally.

“I’ve worked super-hard and put a lot of heart and effort into this project and have gotten to know myself much more during its making,” she tells us. “It feels like I’ve come out the other side another person. It’s a very personal album, so it feels good that it’s received such a warm welcome.”

When listening to Sway, you hear a significantly more stripped-down version of Styrke’s music, with the focus being on letting the lyrics and melodies speak to the listener. She herself says that she wanted to narrow down the sound as much as possible in order to keep the communication simple and direct.

“It took much more time to create every element in the songs, since everything matters much more when you keep it simple,” she says. “Every tune, melody and lyric needs to lift each other and the production has been tightly knit to the songwriting process. It has all been made from scratch.”

Listening to Sway is like taking part in delicate stories centred around human interactions, relationships and feelings, with its tracks revealing small doses of insight into human psychology.

“When I started the process I wanted to dig into other people’s minds, but halfway through making the album, I realised I was starting to getting to know myself instead. The record contains a wide range of feelings, both romantic and the direct opposite. Say My Name, for example, is an anti-love song. My last record was very expressive, but this time I wanted to write songs that processed the feelings and dialogues you usually keep to yourself. They are songs about things you think about a lot but seldom share with others.”

But while you would expect making an album that thoroughly analyses human relationships in this way to help her gain wisdom, Styrke says she feels almost more clueless than ever. “I never cease to be amazed at how people behave. I almost feel less certain of the reasons behind why people act in certain ways now,” she says.

Even though she’s only in her mid-twenties, Styrke has been in the music industry for a long time and opens up about gaining greater confidence: “I don’t know if it’s related to getting older or if it’s just that I’ve been doing this for a while. There’s a great difference between knowing that you’re good and saying it and actually meaning it. I used to say it without meaning it, but now I know it. It gives me such incredible freedom. I can rest in the foundation of my artistry and recognise my strengths and weaknesses.

“Collaborations are important to me and something I enjoy a lot – I like finding the right people and creating exactly what I want to create. It doesn’t matter what the music climate looks like or what is happening around you, your greatest asset is yourself. You can never look to another person and try to do their thing better than they do.”

Next up for her is a tour with Katy Perry and a summer filled with festival gigs. Styrke sounds excited when she tells me about the clothes she tried on for the tour. “I would not have been able to dream of clothes this wonderful,” she says. “I get to feel like a superhero mixed with a cowboy-princess, a larger-than-life version of myself. I love using clothes as a way of personal expression, to be able to just wake up and figure out what kind of person you feel like being for the day and then choosing your outfit based on that feeling.”

Even though Sway has only just been released, Styrke reveals that she has plans to put out even more tunes later this year. She’s on a never-ending quest to fulfil her creative dreams and conquer the world through music, one song at a time.

Team credits:

Artist Tove Styrke
Words by Amanda Båmstedt
Photography by John Scarisbrick
Styling by Natalie Olenheim

Fashion and beauty credits:
#Throughout Socks by WEEKDAY
#Featured Image FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; White dress by RICK OWENS, corset by MATILDA IVARSSON, trainers by ADIDAS
swimsuit by CALVIN KLEIN
#1 and #3 Top by ADIDAS, leggings by REMAKE STOCKHOLM
#2 Jacket by MATILDA IVARSSON, top by Anne Tostrup, jeans by Hannah Broström, shoes by HUMANA STORES
#4 Yellow hoodie by ME AND MY HOMIES, Leo-body by Humana Stores, Jacket by FILIPPA K, body by HUMANA STORES
#5 and 6 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Studio eye gloss in lightly tauped and glitter in iridescent white by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Top by ASHISH, shorts by LEVI’S, trainers by ADIDAS
#7 and #9 EYES: Couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Top by ADIDAS, leggings by REMAKE STOCKHOLM, cap and belt stylist’s own, shoes by H&M
#8 and #10 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Hoodie by ACNE STUDIOS, underwear by TOMMY HILFIGER, diving suit by MATILDA IVARSSON, shoes by H&M
#11 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Studio eye gloss in lightly tauped and glitter in iridescent white by MAC, couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Hoodie by ACNE STUDIOS, underwear by TOMMY HILFIGER, diving suit by MATILDA IVARSSON, shoes by H&M, jacket by FILIPPA K, hoodie by ME AND MY HOMIES, earrings by SKANSHAGE SWEDEN
#12 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Studio eye gloss in lightly tauped and glitter in iridescent white by MAC, couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Coat and t-shirt by BEYOND RETRO, shorts by MATILDA IVARSSON, shoes by H&M
#13 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: Studio eye gloss in lightly tauped and glitter in iridescent white by MAC, couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK;
#14 and #15 FACE: BBU pro face palette by BOBBI BROWN, touche éclat in ivory radiance by YVES SAINT LAURENT, cream colour base in pearl and eye brows styler in lingering by MAC, diorshow lash extension effect volume mascara in pro black by DIOR, narsissist wanted cheek palette i by NARS, hyaluronic hydra-powder by BY TERRY; EYES: couture palette in rose baby doll by YVES SAINT LAURENT, glitter in 3D lavender by MAC; LIPS: Matte me lip cream in that’s so fetch and highlighter palette copperplate by SLEEK; Jacket and trousers by ACNE STUDIOS , top by MATILDA IVARSSON, belt by HOPE