:: extras ::
Agentha – the TV4 interview translation:
Part one:
AF = Agnetha
Fältskog
LB =
Lasse Bengtsson
(Interviewer)
LB: Agnetha, when I was driving in my car the other day…..hello by the way�I was thinking what a great songs your wrote!
AF: Yes..
LB: Where is that ability today?
AF: Somewhere deep inside my body and my mind
LB: But you don’t write now…
AF: I don’t write much nowadays
LB: Why not?
AF: It feels like I wrote everything out at that time, I was very productive back then, with my own music and lyrics, there was a lot to write about in that period.
LB:…but they are all so sad, why?
AF: I really don’t know….after a while someone else wrote the lyrics because I was always so critical about my lyrics…
LB: Have you always been selfcritical?
AF: Yes I have, a lot. Especially with the lyrics. There are a lot of them I don’t like because I see them as very naive now.
LB: But, this spring your first album for many years came out
AF: Yes….
Playing the intro of �If I Thought You’d Ever Change Your Mind �
LB: How do you like this one? When you hear it now?
AF: Its good!
LB: How were you thinking when you chose to do a comeback with a new album?
AF: It was a long prosess, it took 2-3-4 years from the idea until recording. I felt I hadn’t finished with the music and had to do another record. And I am very much in love with these songs from the 60’s, it was quite fun. I had a nostalgic trip where old songs I had forgotten came up. These songs where hidden deep inside me and I can remember episodes from that period of my life too, of course….
LB: What makes a song stay deep inside of you?
AF: I think with these songs I was in my teens and its a very emotional period where many things happen that make an impression on you…
LB: How will you describe yourself as a teen?
AF: Like everybody else, I think….It was boys, it was dreams, and I worked a lot already back then. I started at 15 to sing with a band and we travelled around playing .
LB: Do you remember how you were thinking and dreaming back then, what did you want to do with the music?
AF: At that time I just wanted to perform, because I felt I really had a voice, and it was fun to see that people wanted to dance to our music. And then what really was the best, was to make an album, to become a real singer, that was really my dream.
LB: Why did you want to become a singer?
AF: Because I felt I HAD a voice, and many people said that, and that I knew I could write songs and even lyrics sometimes, so I felt that my job was in this business.
LB: But you were not shy back then?
AF: I was very shy!
LB: You where?
AF: Yes
LB: But still you….
AF: I am still shy, and that’s why I feel a discomfort about doing interviews. Its not what I enjoy doing the most. But still I do it. And its because I don’t want to seem strange when I have something new to present. It’s when it starts to become close and private it becomes disturbing.
LB: How did it feel to break out of the isolation, so to speak, and come back into the spotlight, how did you feel about that?
AF: It was a little discomforting in a way, because so many years had gone and I didn’t know if the voice was still there. It was difficult with the voice at first, and then there was the �fear of the microphone� because you get so close to it that every sound you make is heard. It’s a special technique, and it took a while to get over that fear.
LB: Did you feel you had high expectations on yourself?
AF: Yes I had, then and now
LB: It was expected that you had to come out in public in connection with this…..
AF: No, it was never expected. I was very careful about telling everybody that �I can do this and that, but I can’t travel around and work like I did before�, because it wears me out. It is too difficult for me. And everybody understood that, I think
LB: So that is why you chose not to do all the interviews, press conferences and stuff like that?
AF: Yes….because it can easily become too much, and I cant deal with that anymore.
LB: In what why does it wear you out?
AF: Well, I don’t know….too many nerves in a way, you want to create a good image of yourself and it doesn’t always end up that way. And also, the media often control that public image of you, and that can be difficult many times, as that image is not correct. It feels as I have to present myself as I really am, and that is a big pressure…..
LB: Do you think that you have been treated bad by the media?
AF: Sometimes, yes. And they have presented a lot that hasn’t been true too. Overdramatized.
LB: Any examples?
AF: There are so many things….
LB: What is the worst?
AF: I don’t know what that is…..but one special incident: We were on our way from England and I was in a bus when we had an accident and the bus tilted over and I was thrown out of the window of the bus. The media had huge reports about this incident, and at that time I was doing a movie; Raskenstam, and the papers wrote that I was pregnant and they asked different doctors(specialists) if the unborn child could be harmed by this accident…..And, actually it was in the movie I played a pregnant woman. Then media made that pregnancy a real thing, so the public was fooled to believe I was really pregnant.
Stories like this, these false stories, are the reason that makes…..and the public are fed this false information over and over until they believe it…
It has been said about me that I have become a recluse and that I have isolated myself out at Ekerö, which I really haven’t done….but that image has been created because I don’t show myself publicly that much….and it isn’t like that at all….
LB: If you should describe yourself….since there are so many false images of you…..what kind of person are you?
AF: (laughing) Its very difficult for me to say….but I think I am the person I have always been. Down to earth. I have my flaws, of course….I am a very kind person. Down to earth….normal….curious about life….I don’t like stress. I try to have a lot of peace and quiet around me, as much as possible, it’s not very easy these days….but , I become stressed very quickly. I also worry a lot….
LB: What do you worry about?
AF: Everything!(Smiling) No, not everything, but I am easily worried in situations, worried that something will happen with someone, I am an animal person…..It’s very difficult to see pictures of animals that are hurt, and children that are hurt, I cant take it in….I cant handle that, emotionally.
LB: Wilma (his dog) senses you are an animal person, she is in love with you….but all this talk about Garbo, you don’t like that either, I understand….?
AF: That hasn’t come from me, again its an image created by the media because…..I don’t know why they do it, but it might be a sort of �punishment� because I haven’t shown myself in public enough….And I always use to say: �I will rather be an original than a poor copy…�
LB: What happens, then, when you do come forward, because its not that easy for you to do that?
AF: Well I have tried to be quite consistent. I receive a lot of requests, not only from Sweden but also from abroad, and I think its even more difficult to sit in an interview in English when I don’t feel comfortable with the language….but of course I have only myself to blame for that….
LB: Do you feel that your lack of knowledge of the English language is a problem?
AF: yes, really…and then it’s really difficult to talk….and what happens if I do say yes to an interview, then 9-10 others are immideately asking for interviews….
LB: What does an ordinary day for you look like?
AF: Aah….nowadays its quite calm, I take a lot of walks and I try to be with my children, I now have a grandchild, and thats an incredible experience…..
LB: Recently?
AF: She is almost 4 years old…its an incredible happiness, really. And I read a little, watch TV…
LB: What do you read?
AF: I read….not as much books as before, I read newspapers, I want to keep up with the news programs and I try to learn a little.
LB: Do you watch movies? What kind of music do you listen to?
AF: I don’t really watch much TV, but I enjoy going to the movies….not very often…its been a while now…
LB: Have you seen a movie you really liked? Do you remember?
AF: No, but there are many movies I would have liked to see, that I haven’t seen yet….
LB: Like…?
AF: Like Moulin Rouge, with Nicole Kidman. I would like to see that one, haven’t yet….
LB: And what happens…..do you go in to Stockholm, can you walk freely around in public?
AF: Yes I can…but one has to have �eyes in the neck� sometimes….
LB: What happens when you show yourself publicly?
AF: Not that much really…of course I can feel that people recognizes me…but it happens quietly…sometimes someone comes forward in a restaurant asking for autographs, but thats no problem.
LB: Do you think its unpleasant to be out in a city amongst all the people?
AF: No, not like that….It’s not that I enjoy it either but sometimes it can be fun to go out shopping, and I do that. But I enjoy peace and quiet, and I think it can be far to noisy….
LB: Are you sensitive to sounds?
AF: Very much so! Especially if there are many different sounds at the same time, that makes me incredibly stressed…
LB: Has it always been like that?
AF: No it has increased more and more…I can listen to music quite loud, but many different sounds at once….that is what I am sensitive about…..
LB: What does animals mean to you?
AF: Animals mean a lot to me…. they mean calmness and harmony….and they are wonderful to be with…..
LB: Do you have a special relationship to animals? Can you talk with them?
AF: In a way I think I can, there is this understanding of each other. I live with horses around me….
LB: Do you hear what they say?
AF: I don’t think I will say that I can talk with horses….(laughing)…that could turn into a problem…, but I almost can. If you are in a certain mood it can be nice to talk to the horses….
LB: I am wondering….making friends as Agnetha Fältskog…..making new friends, is it difficult?
AF: Difficult question…..It might be that it is…you never know what people are thinking about you, and some may have preconceptions of me…..I don’t have the need for a large circle of friends….I might be a loner, in some ways….
I use to compare myself to Ferdinand, the bull, sitting under the tree…..I feel a little like that…..
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Part 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6:
LB: Are you vulnerable to �weird� people now? There has been a few like that, we have read in the papers..
AF: Yes it comes as a result of the fame and of this profession. Not only for me, I know I share this problem with a lot of people. I receive a lot of letters and weird stuff from disturbed people…
LB: From all over the world?
AF: Yes….really, I have to protect myself from this and don’t let it disturb me, all letters are not nice. It is important to understand that these letters comes from people that have personal problems….
LB: The man that were stalking you, are you still disturbed by him?
AF: I don’t think I can talk much about that, so for safety reasons I choose not to answer that question. I prefer to lie low in this matter…
LB: Does this situation worry you?
AF: Yes it does, but when you have been around as long as I have, you learn how to deal with situations. You have to deal with lots of things, and it can feel a little unfair at times that success brings these things with it…
LB: Have your children been affected?
AF: I think it has gone very well with them. They have been kids, and it was difficult then , it was for all of us. We became a divorced family, the kids were 5 and 1. But thats a long time ago.
LB: When you look back, would you have done things differently? Would you have chosen not to move away from it all as much as you did, to avoid the hysteria around your person? It IS in a way…..because you don’t appear that much in public.
AF: I haven’t done any of it deliberately, I have not made myself a secret, its an image created… It comes from the fact that its not my thing to sit like this and talk. And the older you become, the more you open up…
LB: How is that?
AF: Well, you can talk about things that you couldn’t before, it feels like I can share my life experiences…..show the public that I really am not this secret and strange, I am a normal human beeing.
LB: Can I understand this as a return to a more public Agnetha….?
AF: No, its not that good(laughing)
LB: ABBA has sold almost 400 million records….
AF: Is it that many?
LB: An incredible number..
AF: Yes it is.
LB: How would you explain the ABBA-phenomenon? What are your thoughts about ABBA?
AF: It has meant so much for us, all four of us. I feel enormously grateful to have been a part of it…it just went right up and to the sky (she shows with her arm raised)
And it was a lot of work in that 10-12 year period, and everything happened so fast, and if we have had a slower tempo and instead worked for 5 more years, I would have preferred that….
LB: You mean, taken it easier along the way and then continued for a longer period?
AF: Yes.
LB: So it was too intense?
AF: Yes, it was very intense.
LB: What was the hardest for you?
AF: Travelling.
LB: You have a fear of flying?
AF: Yes, and I still have…and media has written a lot about that too, that I am afraid of flying….It really has to do with what I told you earlier, the worry that something will happen, not that I don’t understand how safe it really is to fly. Its the insecurity when I sit there in the plane, that I cant control it….It may have to do with the fact that I am a �control-person�.
LB: You like to be in control?
AF: Yes, and it is difficult to let go off that. I think I am trying to change, and maybe go by plane some day…
LB: How long time is it since you last flew?
AF: 15 years ago…10 maybe…
LB: So you never go abroad.
AF: No…..of course, its possible to drive.
LB: What was the most fun with ABBA? What is your biggest memory…it wasn’t all struggle, it was a lot of joy too…?
AF: It was a lot of joy. And that we could share the moments before going on stage…with all the nerves…we always felt good that it was the four of us….we could help each other out with the singing, if one had a problem, the other one sang higher to help….But of course Frida and I were competitors too.
LB: Its has been said that it was a fight between you and Frida?
AF: Again, media made that up…
LB: It wasn’t like that?
AF: We got along fine most of the time, but of course with different personalities sometimes you could be annoyed about different things. We were different, and we also had different lives. We were newly divorced, Bjørn and I, and we continued after that(with ABBA). We had our kids and I had to struggle with constant guilt for leaving them at home. That was difficult. But still we stayed home for long periods too. And the contrasts from the luxury suites and coming back home to the washing and the kids could be huge….
LB: Do you have a single moment with ABBA you remember like; �that was really fun!�?
AF: It has to be when we won with Waterloo, it was just incredible…
LB: Do you ever miss that �Kick�…today?
AF: No, I don’t!
LB: Direct answer.
AF: Yes, I don’t miss it, but its very nice to think back on it. Sometimes I cant really understand it, it feels like a different life, a different part of my life. And it is…
LB: But, what was the reason ABBA split?
AF: Because we somehow felt that it wasn’t fun anymore. We were in the studio recording some album and it didn’t feel like before, it felt hard. This was after both our divorces so it was different. But we continued after the divorces.
LB: So it changed after the divorces?
AF: Yes, you can say that….
LB: What is the best ABBA ever made?
AF: The best song? I think its �The winner takes it all�. It is such a complete song. Its flowing, and the song is great….incredible lyrics…
LB: Its a very hard (tough) message in that lyric?
AF: Yes it is… And I like to sing lyrics like that…I love to interpret them….
LB: From what I have heard, you think ABBA were better in studio than on stage?
AF: Yes I did. But again, its because I am very selfcritical. I don’t like seeing us on stage. I think its better to listen to us, than to see us.
LB: Do you have any contact with the others today?
AF: Yes a little, but its not like we hang out…
LB: Bjørn?
AF. Yes of course since he is the father of my children.
LB: How often do you see each other?
AF: The group?
LB: Bjørn…?
AF I don’t really know…it happens from time to time as we also have a grandchild.
LB: Money….do you still receive money from ABBA?
AF: Yes I do
LB: A lot?
AF: Yes.. I get by (laughing) No really, I do.
LB: Even if B&B gets the most of it as songwriters, you also receive some….
AF: Yes and we(Frida and her) have done other things too, Frida has made solo albums, as I have…and money comes from that too….
LB: What does money mean to you?
AF: that is a sensitive subject. I really would have liked to say that I don’t want to talk about money, politics and religion…so I tell you that now….
LB: Why is it sensitive?
AF: Because it is about giving a good answer so that people will believe what you say….
One thing is to have money, another one is when you don’t have it….It is about handling money in a responsible way….so that…..I don’t know what to say…..
I am happy that everything has gone so well, and if I said that money doesn’t matter then everybody would know I was lying….
I would rather have the money to buy things, than being poor.
Of course, you can be rich or poor in many different ways. Its not always a question about money. You can feel rich if you feel you have a �rich� life. As a person I am the same now as when I was young. When I grew up we didn’t have lot of money, I didn’t have my own room….I know how it feels to grow up, not poor, but not able to buy what you want….
LB: What do you think about the future? What will happen with Agnetha Fältskog in the future?
AF: Who knows? I don’t know….Sometimes I feel that this album was my last, but I know myself….suddenly I can get a new idea. And I know there are many people who think I should do my own material…
LB: Yes, why don’t you?
AF: I cant promise anything (laughing)
LB: This book, �som jag är�, came out in 1996. The author has said she is interested in auction out the unpublished parts of the conversations. How do you feel about that?
AF: Its terrible that she does that, but I really don’t know now what happens. I do feel its a crime in a way if she does that (breach of trust).
When you work with a book project like this together, you become very close and have deep discussions about everything and nothing, and I wanted to be a part of the prosess, and took out the parts I didn’t want to include in the book. And its those parts that she has….
LB: Have you been in contact with her?
AF: No, I have left that to my advisors. Unfortunately…that’s how it can be sometimes.
LB: Are you a happy person today?
AF: You don’t ask easy questions….
LB: Thats how it should be….
AF: I am happy about a lot of things….Is that enough?(smiling)
LB: What are you doing for Christmas?
AF: Having peace and quiet, be with my family, eat Christmas dinner….
LB: Merry Christmas, thank you for letting us have this interview.
AF: Merry Christmas, thank you for having me.
With great thanks to Morten, Norway who translated the whole interview and Mike, UK. Also thanks to Diego Lopez, UK.
Translation by Morten, Norway & Mike, UK with thanks to Diego Lopez, UK.