Agnete Saba

Agnete Kristin Johnsen Saba (born 4 July 1994), also known as Agnete Saba, Agnete Johnsen or simply Agnete, is a Norwegian singer and songwriter. Saba is best known for being the lead singer of the Norwegian teen punk band The BlackSheeps. She represented Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 as a solo artist with the song "Icebreaker".

Agnete Saba
Agnete in 2016
Agnete in 2016
Background information
Birth nameAgnete Kristin Johnsen
Also known as
  • Agnete
  • Agnete Saba
Born (1994-07-04) 4 July 1994
Nesseby, Norway
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
Instrument(s)
  • Vocals
Years active2008–present

Life and career

Early life and career

Saba was born as Agnete Kristin Johnsen on 4 July 1994 in Varangerbotn, Nesseby, located in Finnmark, Norway. She is an ethnic Sami and the daughter of Sami children's author Signe Iversen.[1] In 2020, she changed her surname to her grandmother's maiden name Saba.[2]

The BlackSheeps were formed in 2008 while its members were attending school in their hometown of Nesseby. They later won Melodi Grand Prix Junior 2008 with their song "Oro jaska, beana" ("Be quiet, dog") which was performed in both Norwegian and Northern Sami.[3] The band later performed at MGP Nordic 2008 and won the competition. "Oro jaska, beana" went on to win Song of the Year at the Spellemannprisen Awards and peaked at number-one on the Norwegian singles chart.[4]

In 2011, the band were announced as one of the competing acts in Melodi Grand Prix 2011 with the song "Dance Tonight", where they placed second.[5] They later split up the same year.

In 2013, Agnete competed in the second season of the Norwegian music TV-competition Stjernekamp, where she placed second in the finale against Silya Nymoen. The same year she also performed as an interval act during Melodi Grand Prix Junior 2013.

2014–present: Skal vi danse?

In 2014, Johnsen was announced as one of the competing celebrities in the tenth season of the Norwegian version of Dancing with the Stars, called Skal vi danse? (Shall we dance?). She went on to win the competition. In 2015, she participated in the Norwegian reality television series 71° nord, but withdrew early in the season because of mental health problems.[6]

Eurovision Song Contest 2016

On 19 January 2016, Johnsen was announced as one of the ten competing acts in Melodi Grand Prix 2016 with the song "Icebreaker".[7] In the final, held on 27 February, she was declared the winner after receiving 166,728 votes from the Norwegian public.[8] She represented Norway in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 performing on May 12, 2016, during the second semi-final held in Stockholm, but failed to qualify to the May 14 final.

Discography

Extended plays
Title Details
Tundra

As lead artist
Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album
NOR
[9]
"Goin' Insane" 2013 — Nature
"Mama" 2014 —
"Icebreaker" 2016 11
"Beginning of the End" 2020 — Tundra
"Boo" 2021 —
"Solid" —
"Barely Breathing"
(with Jowst featuring Azzip)		 — Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released
Title Year Album
"Hurricane Lover"
(Carina Dahl featuring Agnete)		 2015 Non-single album

References
  1. Nå kan Signe vinne Nordisk råds litteraturpris på www.finnmarkdagblad.no/finnmarken/lokale_nyheter/ Publisert 29. oktober 2013. Besøkt 2. november 2013.
  2. Dønvold-Myhre, Lars (2020-08-19). "Derfor byttet hun navn" (in Norwegian). dagbladet.no. Retrieved 2020-08-19.
  3. "Suveren seier til samisk rock". NRK Troms og Finnmark. 2008-09-14.
  4. "Oro Jaska, Beana" (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 2008-12-18. Retrieved 2008-11-30.
  5. Hondal, Victor (29 November 2011). "Norway: Full line up for Melodi Grand Prix revealed". ESCToday.com. Retrieved 29 November 2011.
  6. Ighanian, Catherine Gonsholt (14 February 2016). "Agnete trakk seg fra "71 grader nord" – utredes for bipolar lidelse". vg.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 5 May 2016.
  7. Hyttebakk, Jon Marius (19 January 2016). "Stage Dolls blant årets MGP-artister". mgp.no (in Norwegian). NRK. Retrieved 19 January 2016.
  8. Jordan, Paul; Nilsson, Helena (27 February 2016). "Agnete to represent Norway in 2016". eurovision.tv. European Broadcasting Union. Retrieved 27 February 2016.
  9. Hung, Steffen. "Discography Agnete". Norwegian Charts Portal. Hung Medien (Steffen Hung).
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