Since winning Scandinaviansoul.com Single of the year 2013 for ‘Summer Feelings’, Norwegian singer Rebekka B Maeland, musically, seems to be on a steady rise upwards. We caught up with her briefly to find out her reaction on receiving the prize.
Hi ya Rebekka! Firstly, congratulations on winning the fans vote for Single of the year at the recent Scandinavian Soul Awards! How did it feel when you were told?
Rebekka B: Thank you so much! How did it feel? It felt like 1 million butterflies were going nuts inside my body! It was an extremely happy day when I received that phone call. But you know what? I’m still happy about it to this day. Maybe even more?!
What does the award mean to you?
The award means A LOT to me. Not only because we actually have the actual Scandinavian Soul Award now (Hurraaay!!!). But really…It has been extremely difficult to perform soul music in Norway and Scandinavia, so this award will always remind me to never quit, dream big, and work hard! I feel lucky and blessed at the same time to have this beautiful award sitting in my living room!
We also saw you in the Norwegian papers, has there been more interest in your music since the announcement?
Yes, I’ve been featured in a few newspapers recently, and because of that, I’ve been a lot busier lately.
And congratulations once again!!! We know you’re not an artist who sits still, and we’re delighted to see you recently won a competition to perform at the Hove Festival (Hovefestivalen) this summer. Can you tell us a little more about this and what performing there will mean to you?
Thank you! Yes, I was selected along with three other bands in my city to play live and compete (for a spot to play). Thankfully, I won! – My very own concert at the Hove festival! The Hove Festival is the biggest festival in Norway, and I’ve been dying to play there for years. Google the festival and you will understand exactly what I’m talking about. (https://www.hovefestivalen.no/)
I believe your new single, ‘Should have Been’, is out now, what can you tell us about it?
Yeah ‘Should have been’ is out now and I’m super excited about it. You can find it on ITunes, Spotify and so on. This song is more pop than soul actually, but I think soul-lovers will enjoy it equally as much.