The Making of “Mirror” with Sigrid

Since her ascent to pop stardom in 2017, Sigrid achieved every accolade a young artist from a small town off the coast of Norway could have ever imagined. From releasing her critically acclaimed debut EP ‘Don’t Kill My Vibe’, to winning the Sound of 2018, performing across the globe at The Royal Variety Show, the Nobel Peace Prize, headlining her first Arena show at 3Arena in Dublin, and her Glastonbury performance to 30,000 festival goers, Sigrid has lit up stages with her non-conformist and progressive attitudes to pop. Ending 2019 with a five-star headline show at London’s Eventim Apollo, Sigrid hadn’t stopped in four years, but when the entire world came to a halt, like many others, Sigrid struggled massively and fell into her own identity crisis. “The thing that was most important to me was taken away; touring and travelling and being an artist. I thought, who am I without the music? My self-worth as a human is not just work, but who am I without my job? But last year made me realise I don’t want to do anything else. I wanted to do this for the rest of my life,” she said.

Last year, Sigrid was working in LA developing the songs that would become the follow-up to her 2019 album, ‘Sucker Punch’, the critically acclaimed debut that arrived after the pop sensation’s BBC Sound of 2018 win and the top 10, Platinum certified success of festival anthem “Strangers”. But when the pandemic hit, Sigrid had to return to Norway. On the flight home, Sigrid realised she had the genesis of her latest track “Mirror”.

“Mirror” is Sigrid’s immaculate, disco-ball shaped new single and a grand return for an artist who rewrote the rulebook on the pop-archetype. “Mirror” was written for the festivals that have become Sigrid’s definitive stage, and the thousands of fans who will “feel the bass in their chest” says Sigrid, adding, “I walk into the studio and know I want to make a big chorus!” Ready to blast out to live crowds someday soon, the track is evocative of Sigrid’s talent of focusing in on the personal whilst speaking to the universal.

Having started life with long-time collaborator Emily Warren, “Mirror” was finished in Denmark. “I’m not an artist without being in the studio, writing, and I’m not a writer without being on stage” she said. The studio has always been the popstar’s safe space, but the pandemic meant the studio became symbolic, whilst the stage and getting back to her fans became her inspiration and intention.

The music video for “Mirror” is a remarkable collaboration with director Femke Huurdeman and represents self-love in the aftermath of a relationship, through a cinematic visual feast of dance and movement. In Sigrid’s own words: “We wanted to explore how conflicting it can feel to have different sides of yourself competing against each other, and not working together. And as I can’t stand still whilst singing, there’s a lot of dancing, running, driving – you can tell I had a great time on the shoot”.

“It can be quite liberating to reinvent yourself after getting out of a relationship. This journey of finding your core, coming to terms with who you are and radiating this from oneself is at the heart of the concept of the video. For me, it’s always important to showcase a 3-dimensional image of a character. We built together on a language of movements, and different moods for each scene, all rooted in Sigrid’s own style of performing. She can be empowering, humorous, sensitive, playful, captivating and bold, and that’s something I think you can feel throughout the video,” says director Femke.

As the world starts to move, we are all more than ready to see Sigrid dance across the global stage once again and share her new era of glorious experimental pop.