Iselin Løken Solheim (born 20 June 1990), first known as Iselin Solheim and then simply as Iselin, is a Norwegian singer-songwriter. She is well known for her uncredited vocals on Alan Walker's singles "Faded" (2015) and "Sing Me to Sleep" (2016) and Gryffin's single "Just for a Moment" (2018).
Iselin Solheim | |
|---|---|
 Iselin performing in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Iselin Løken Solheim |
| Also known as | Iselin |
| Born | 20 June 1990 Naustdal, Norway |
| Origin | Oslo, Norway |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Labels | Warner Music Sweden |
Iselin started her music career in 2007 and her songs are mainly in English. After signing with Bisi, she released her debut single in 2012. She started going mononymously around 2017.
Career
Iselin Løken Solheim was born in Naustdal, located in Sogn og Fjordane, Norway and started singing at a young age. In 2007 she participated in the Norwegian version of Pop Idol named Idol - Jakten på en superstjerne, where she placed in the top 40.[1] In 2009, after high school she attended Skiringssal Folkehøgskule in Sandefjord, where she mainly studied music and then began writing her own songs. In 2010, she attended The Institute for Performing Arts in Liverpool, where she studied Popularize Music & Sound Technology. Here she developed as an artist and performer, starting with new projects and cultivating her own sounds.[2]
After returning to Norway from the United Kingdom, Bisi Music signed her immediately. She then released her well-received debut single "What's Happening", which received wide airplay and was selected Song of the Week for the national radio station Radio Norge. At that time Solheim met Jesper Borgen together with her former manager Hilde Wahl from Bisi Music to test out a new partnership. They later on wrote the text, melody and produced the song "The Wizard of Us" and "Oracle" together in 2013.[1] Her next single "Giants" was released in 2015.
In late 2015 and early 2016, she lent uncredited vocals on Alan Walker's songs "Faded" and "Sing Me to Sleep".[3]
In 2018, Solheim released the solo track "Bathtub". She says of the song:
I'd done the singer-songwriter thing for a while and all of my friends started to get educations and stuff, and I kind of got insecure about music for the first time… whether I should do it or not… it all got a bit too much. [...] I felt a bit stressed a while ago, and at the time I was supposed to have many sessions in Stockholm. After one of my sessions I retreated to my hotel bathtub to unwind, and was inspired to write the track.[4]
She then released her next single "Lost" in September and an acoustic version in October 2018. "Anyone Out There" was released in February 2019.
Felix Cartal's single "Walking By" (2018), Gryffin's single "Just for a Moment" (2018) and 3LAU & Justin Caruso's single "Better With You" (2019) all featured Solheim.
Solheim has also co-written songs for, among others, R3hab, Matoma, SKAAR, Inna, Broiler, James Carter, and Martin Tungevaag.[5]
Discography
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
Credited as Iselin Solheim | ||
| "What's Happening" | 2012 | Non-album singles |
| "The Wizard of Us" | 2013 | |
| "Oracle" | ||
| "Giants" | 2015 | |
| "Listen" | 2016 | |
Credited as Iselin | ||
| "Bathtub"[6] | 2018 | Non-album singles |
| "Lost"[7] | ||
| "Anyone Out There" | 2019 | |
As featured artist
| Title | Year | Album/EP |
|---|---|---|
Credited as Iselin Solheim | ||
| "Usynlig" (Cir.Cuz featuring Iselin Solheim) | 2013 | Vi Er Cir.Cuz |
| "Giants"[8] (Lotus with Montis featuring Iselin Solheim) | 2017 | Non-album single |
Credited as Iselin | ||
| "Do You Care"[9] (Ryan Riback featuring Iselin) | 2017 | Non-album single |
| "Walking By"[10] (Felix Cartal featuring Iselin) | 2018 | Next Season |
| "Listen"[11] (Seeb featuring Iselin) | Nice to Meet You | |
| "Just For A Moment"[12] (Gryffin featuring Iselin) | Gravity | |
| "On Me"[13] (Samuraii featuring Iselin) | Non-album singles | |
| "Better With You"[14] (3LAU and Justin Caruso featuring Iselin) | 2019 | |
| "Clear Water" (Karl Zine featuring Iselin) | ||
Other songs
| Title | Year | Platform |
|---|---|---|
| "Coloured Sky" | 2011 | SoundCloud |
| "Dancing in the Rain" (with Mari T Jorgensen) | 2011 | YouTube |
| "Crazy Town" (featuring Jesper Borgen) | 2012 |
Production credits
| Title | Year | Artist | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Faded" | 2015 | Alan Walker | Uncredited vocalist |
| "Sing Me to Sleep" | 2016 | ||
| "Mood" | 2018 | Felix Cartal | Writer |
| "Distant Memory" | 2021 | R3hab, W&W and Timmy Trumpet |
Music videos
| Title | Year | Directors |
|---|---|---|
| "The Wizard of Us"[15] | 2013 | — |
| "Faded (Restrung)"[16] | 2015 |
|
| "Giants"[17] | 2015 | — |