Linda Varg has the feminist bad ass punk sound that you will want to jam out too. The Swedish born pop star just released her new single, ‘Like A Boss,’ which was a collaboration between her, Anders Wrethov, and her husband Ulf Nilsson (winner of The Voice Sweden). The song is the ultimate party tune and a great addition to her list of singles. Linda also recently put out, ‘Standing In The Middle Of The Road,’ which is her response to the bullying she has received as an adult. Inspired, Linda shares some advice to those who are victims of bullying below. Additionally, Linda talks with Jejune about Project iRISE, a survivor-led, community-based nonprofit organization with a mission to educate and empower survivors of human trafficking and those at risk. Read on to learn more about Linda Varg, her upcoming projects, and her involvement in Project iRISE.

Where are you based?
I was born and raised in a small village in the woods in the middle of Sweden, but I left as soon as I graduated high school. First, I moved to Gothenburg to attend the Ballet Academy, and since then I've been living all over Sweden, with the last 3.5 years in Halmstad, which is a small city on the west coast of Sweden.

What inspired you to get into music?
I was very young when I started singing. My first memory of that is from when I was seven years old sitting on the floor with my friend singing along to Michael Jackson. I love singing and always have! But it wasn't until I was 13 years old, and I sang a solo song in church during my confirmation, that I found out that I had a talent for singing. I was asked to join a gospel choir, which I did, and that was the beginning of my journey as a singer.

My songwriting started much later though, not until I was around 26 years old, and no one was more surprised than me! Could a country girl who grew up in a family with no musicians write songs???!!! I was so happy and grateful for this.

You have performed as Annie in the musical Chicago in Copenhagen. We were told that this was your childhood dream, how has musical theater influenced your career?
Yes this was really a dream come true. It was fun for a while but I found out pretty soon that musicals were not for me. There was no freedom for me in doing the same thing over and over again every night. I had my heart in writing and performing my own songs. So, after 1.5 years, when my contract ended, I decided to move on. So to answer your question, I have to say that it hasn't really influenced my career.

Your music has a bit of feminist bad ass punk flare to it. How would you describe your style?
What you said covers it pretty well! LOL!!! I have a love for writing songs that have something to say, I like to write about my own life experiences and thoughts, and sometimes the songs come out a little bit punk-ish and sometimes they're dressed as beautiful ballads. "Keep going", for example, is a song I wrote many years ago, but the message never gets old: To be grateful, cherish being alive, and treat life as a gift. Wouldn't we take better care of what we have, have more fun, and stop taking everything so serious? What if, when we die, we wake up and realize that it was all just a dream, and it wasn't real, it was just a gift to live a life on planet earth. I love to think about stuff like that.

Your new single, “Like A Boss” is so fun. Can you tell us a little bit about it and what inspired you to write it?
"Like a boss" is the ultimate party-tune! It's describing a perfect night out, and how you and your friends own it "Like a boss". Just sing along to the uplifting beat and catchy melody and you'll wanna get it on. I contacted Anders Wrethov, a great songwriter here in Sweden, and asked if he wanted to write a song with me. In our first writing session we found out that we had the same idea about what we wanted to create: a fun party song, with a real punch line for the chorus that conveys the message and spirit of the song: "LIKE A BOSS, I LIKE IT"!!!! We got help from my husband Ulf Nilsson (winner of The Voice Sweden) to finish up the lyrics. He is a bad ass song writer, and I love the result!!!

You also recently released the song “Standing In The Middle Of The Road”. Can you explain what the song is about to our readers?
The song is written about my experiences with bullying, not as a kid, but as an adult. "Friends" behaving badly, and freezing me out. I've noticed that some people have difficulties believing that this has happened to me because I'm so confident about my music and as an artist, and I don’t apologize for standing on stage showing them who is the boss, but it did. The song is about me growing as a person, and moving on from how I don't wanna be treated. I don't mix with that kind of people anymore. What I wish for people to hear, when they listen to the song, is the message that you should never let anyone, anything or any circumstances run you over, and what might seem as a failure, broken dreams or insurmountable obstacles or challenges can instead be the passage or opening to something much greater than you could ever have imagined! Stay strong and keep growing.

What advice would you have to victims of bullying and others going through emotional hardships?
Walk away! You are worthy of only the best in life. Start treating yourself with love and respect. Every time you think a bad thought about yourself, change it, and say something nice to yourself. I promise that you will start attracting good people and circumstances into your life.

You wrote the song along with platinum-selling artist Ulf Nilsson and it was mastered by Björn Engelmann (Abba, Backstreet Boys, Zara Larsson). How did their support and wisdom influence this piece?
Björn Engelmann helped me with the production process of the song, for example, making suggestions on how to mix the different elements even better; so that, when it was time for mastering, it was like polishing a gem, lol. He is always up to date, and always does an outstanding job. Ulf and I write a lot of songs together, he understands me, and that makes it so easy to express what I wanna say in my songs.

What is the next step in your musical journey?
I recently signed a record deal with Fifth Island Music/Sony Music Sweden and I've started recording my first full length album. I have never been more exited! I have been my own record label, and my own booking agent, etc, etc, for so many years, but now, I feel that it is the perfect timing in my career to sign with a record label. I can take the time to focus on creating the best album ever. I've written most of the songs myself, but there's also a couple of co-writes with Ulf Nilsson, Petter Diamant, and Mathias Wollo (Ronan Keeting, Britney Spears etc) who's also producing the album. The plan is to release the first of maybe five singles in the beginning of spring, and then, the album in mid fall. We're also planning a tour to go along with the releases.

You recently became involved with Project iRISE, an organization against human trafficking that helps survivors move on with their lives. Can you explain more about this organization and the services that they offer?
I watched the movie "Human trafficking" many years ago, and it broke my heart. I was aware of human trafficking before, but something in that movie made it real to me, and I felt so helpless and sad. I started looking up in windows, when I was out walking, to see if there was someone signaling for help somewhere. I so much wanted to help, but had no idea how to do that. But eventually, I came across Project iRISE.

Here's from their info sheet:
Project iRISE is a survivor-led, community-based nonprofit organization with a mission to educate and empower survivors of human trafficking and those at risk. Their vision is to end human trafficking and gender-based violence by raising awareness, addressing stigma, and empowering survivors.

These are the words of Rhonelle Bruder, Founder & Executive Director of Project Irise:
"I founded Project iRISE in 2020 with the belief that survivors of human trafficking should be given every opportunity to succeed in life. But faced with multiple challenges, this is often next to impossible to achieve without help. That's why Project iRISE aims to support survivors to make this vision a reality."

You recently supported an auction put on by iRISE. Can you tell us more about this and your overall involvement with this organization?
My song "Standing in the middle of the road" is about strength and courage to stand up for yourself, and I really love the idea of Project iRISE educating people and helping them raise their self-worth. I was thinking hard on how I could contribute to their work, you know being an artist in Sweden, and I came up with this idea — what if my friend Emilia Lindberg, who is an amazing artist and painter, and I were to collaborate? So she created a piece of art inspired by the cover art from "Standing in the middle of the road" and then we put it up for auction on Ebay with the promise that all the money would go to Project iRISE. The winning bidder would of course get the painting, but also a personal "Thank you-video" from me and both of us also signed the painting on the back. Turned out that one of my biggest fans in the US bought the painting and we wired 100% of the winning bid to Project iRISE.

How do you plan to support iRISE further into the future?
I don't know at the moment, but there will come more opportunities for me to help Project iRISE, and if not, I will come up with something myself.

Do you believe the power of music can influence charity and activism?
Yes very much. Almost every person on this planet is listening to music and it's a language that transcends age, gender, race, and goes straight to the heart. So a big YES to that!

The pandemic really affected the music and touring industry. How were you affected and do you plan to get back on the road anytime soon?
A lot of gigs were cancelled, and the plans made for my first tour in the US were put on hold. Instead, I started streaming live on FB from my kitchen, and that was going great for a while, until everyone else started doing it too! LOL!!! I had to take a job on the side to get by so I started working as a kindergarten teacher. But now, after 1.5 years of doing that, I decided to quit and I've started booking gigs again. But you do what it takes right??!!!

How are you staying positive during the pandemic and shelter in place?
I meditate every day and I'm staying very aware of my thoughts, doing my best not to let bad thoughts run me over. I am the boss, not my mind!!! I also study and practice the law of attraction, which has changed my life dramatically, in a good way. I guess that's one of the reasons why I'm so lucky to be doing this interview. It's a manifestation.

What is your motto in life?
It's a quote by Emile Coue: "Every day, in every way, I'm getting better and better"

To hear more from Linda Varg, please follow the links below:
Spotify link to "Standing in the middle of the road"
Spotify link to "Like a boss"
YouTube channel: Linda Varg
Facebook: @lindavargmusic
Instagram: @lindavarg

How Linda Varg Is Handling Life 'Like A Boss'