Swedish singer Mariam the Believer is playing at Stockholm Music & Arts festival alongside Regina Spektor, Rodriguez and Prince, and hopes to be able to snatch a pair of platform shoes from the latter: “I can relate to having a lot of authority while being short” says the chanteuse…

You’re in Berlin right now. What are you doing there?

I’m working. I have a part in a modern opera, which premieres on August 1 at Bregenzer Festspiele and then travels to Berlin and London. It’s based on the novel The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks, who sadly passed away recently, and the music is written by Ben Frost who’s into drone metal. So I’ve just been hanging on a wall for five hours, to be exact.

Why did you choose to call yourself Mariam the Believer?

Life is a struggle and we’re all fighting to tame our demons. Or to just pay the bills. But we do have a lot of power inside of us and it felt important to make that clear – to myself just as much as to anyone else. Hope is important, to believe in something and to hold on to something. I wanted a name that meant something, and still was personal. It’s how I work – I try to transform the hollow spaces inside of us to something powerful and strong.

When did you start making music?

As a little girl I was a member of a sing-back club. I got a cassette sent to me every month with current hits; regular versions on one side and instrumental versions on the other, and then I had a little tape recorder where I could plug in a microphone and make recordings over the music. So I started making my own songs on top of those songs. Later I started to play the violin, and last year I bought a Gibson. But I’m very restless when it comes to instruments.

Do you have any formal training as a musician?

Well, I did this four-year programme at the Academy of Music and Drama in Gothenburg. It’s like free art, but for music. I was able to tailor the programme as I wanted, and basically did yoga and therapy for four years. I don’t know if you can categorize that as a proper musical education, but it was extremely important for my artistic development. How I evolve as a person affects what I do as a musician, especially since my body is my instrument. But I think they stopped offering that course.

What would you do if you didn’t make music?

I’ve been thinking about that myself. I eat, drink and breathe music, so it would have to be something with music. Music therapy is extremely interesting. If I didn’t sing, maybe I’d be a music therapist.

How does it feel to play at the same festival as Prince?

Great!. He’s a phenomenon. If I was your girlfriend is a given on any playlist of mine. He’s got a lot of authority although he’s small, which I can relate to. Maybe I’ll snatch a pair of his platform shoes. He probably has a few.

Mariam’s picks at the Stockholm Music & Arts festival:

Diamanda Galás
She has a wonderful dark energy and a fantastic voice.

Omar Souleyman
Omar is brilliant, I wouldn’t mind collaborating with him on my next album. I also like that his keyboardist performs with his keyboard wrapped in plastic.

Efterklang
Efterklang of course! Courageous musicians and lovely people.

Words by Karin Ström
Photos: KK+TF, Klara Källström and Thobias Fäldt