Interview: Agnes Carlsson

Yes, I know what you must be thinking - HOW THE CRAP DID I GET AN INTERVIEW LIKE THIS? Thank a close online friend of mine, beE (we go WAY back to my pirate blogger days - she was my cover art maker back then) - she runs Pop Nation. It was sort of her 'birthday gift' to me that I could send in questions for Agnes along with the ones made by another close online friend of mine, Mel, who does all the interviews for Pop Nation. And I am thinking OH YEAHHHHHHHH!!!!! Because this is damn big. What kind of 15 year-old gets to interview someone like AGNES!??! This is so cool.
I won't beat around the bush anymore because you all know who Agnes is - I still can't believe it! This is like, the best week of my life. Note that this is my half of the interview, to read the rest go to Pop Nation, and that the answers were really in capital letters when it was sent - no edits were made.

1. What makes your career and music so brilliant are the songs you put out. You have an impressive back catalogue of what I class as some of the best pop songs in the world - what was your choosing process for them like and how do you yourself spot a hit?
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR WORDS. WITH THE LAST ALBUM I WORKED VERY CLOSE TO ANDERS HANSSON AND RELEASE ME IS MY, SO FAR, BIGGEST HIT. WE WROTE IT TOGETHER WITH SHARON. A HIT ACCORDING TO ME IS A SONG THAT AFFECTS ME AND THAT I FEEL I CAN MAKE IT MY OWN.

2. As many people know, you won Swedish Idol back in 2005. What does the 'Idol Label', the fact that you broke into the industry by winning a reality show, mean to you and how did/does it affect your career?
FOR ME IDOL WAS A GREAT SCHOOL. I PERFORMED IN FRONT OF MILLIONS OF PEOPLE EVERY WEEK AND THAT WAS A REALLY GOOD START FOR ME.

3. Why did you choose that song Release Me as a British single and what was your initial reaction to the success of the single in the UK?
THERE WAS A RECORD COMPANY IN THE UK THAT CHOSE THE SONG AS THE FIRST SINGLE. I AM REALLY HAPPY ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT HAS HAPPEND IN THE CHARTS AROUND THE WORLD.

4. What's the reason for your departure from Sony BMG and why did you choose Roxy records after you left?
SONY MUSIC WAS NOT REALLY GOOD FOR ME AND I WANTED TO WORK WITH PEOPLE I CONNECTED WITH. I MET UP WITH ROXY AND WE CONNECTED

5. Your album credits state that you co-wrote a few songs on 'Dance Love Pop' and 'Stronger'. Would you like to further explore songwriting and possibly even record production in the near or distant future?
I WRITE SONGS CONSTANTLY AND THIS IS SOMETHING I WILL KEEP ON DOING