Fredrik Strand Halland is a Norwegian singer, songwriter, guitarist and producer based in Los Angeles.

Fredrik Halland
Birth nameFredrik Strand Halland
Born (1993-11-21) 21 November 1993 (age 31)
Bergen, Norway
GenresR&B, Alternative pop, Avant-rock, Jazz
Occupation(s)Musician, recording engineer
Instrument(s)Percussion, bass guitar, guitar, keyboards, theremin, vocals
Websitewww.officialfredrikhalland.com

Early life

edit

Born in Bergen, Halland began playing the guitar at a very young age. When he turned 9, he started taking lessons from guitarist Mads Eriksen,[1] who first introduced Halland to the Blues. At twelve he performed a Stevie Ray Vaughan classic from Texas Flood in a Norwegian talent competition;[2] in 2007 he was awarded the City of Bergen's talent prize;[3] at 16 he won the Notodden Blues Festival contest for blues guitarists.[4] He soon had over 100 live performances, including at South by Southwest in Austin, Texas.

Career

edit

At the age of 16 Halland moved to Los Angeles after receiving a scholarship to attend the Musicians Institute in Hollywood. He was selected as the first runner-up in Guitar Player Magazine's “Guitar Superstar 2011” competition hosted by guitarist Larry Carlton. After graduating with honors, Halland started his own production company, named after the mountains surrounding his hometown. He toured with Colbie Caillat soon after.[1] He played guitar on Justin Bieber's "Roller Coaster" in 2013[5] and on Michael Jackson's posthumous album Xscape in 2014.[6][7]

He took part in Melodi Grand Prix 2024, the Norwegian selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2024, with the song "Stranded".[8] He did not manage to qualify for the final.[9]

Discography

edit

Singles

edit
Single Year Album or EP
"Someday" 2019 Non-album singles
"Taken by You"
"Roots"
"Said and Done" 2020
"Stranded" 2024

References

edit
  1. ^ a b Nilsson, Ørjan (29 January 2013). "'Ingen grenser for hvor langt han kan nå'". Bergensavisen (in Norwegian).
  2. ^ Siltanen, Vesa (29 April 2016). "Bluesia perjantaihin: 12-vuotias norjalaisnuorukainen tulkitsee Stevie Ray Vaughania kuin vanha konkari". Soundi (in Finnish).
  3. ^ "Bergen kommunes kunstnerpris og kulturpriser 2011" (PDF) (in Norwegian). Bergen kommune. 2 September 2011. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
  4. ^ "Fredrik Strand Halland wins guitar competition". Archived from the original on 2 June 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  5. ^ Ødegård, Ann Kristin (28 November 2013). "Bergenser spiller med Bieber". Bergensavisen (in Norwegian).
  6. ^ "Then and Now Fredrik Strand Holland". Guitars Going Viral. Archived from the original on 7 October 2015. Retrieved 6 May 2016.
  7. ^ Flaaten, Gerhard (13 May 2014). "Bergenser spiller på tittelsporet til Michael Jackson-plate". Bergens Tidende (in Norwegian). Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  8. ^ "Norway's Melodi Grand Prix 2024: The 18 artists and songs". Eurovision.tv. EBU. 5 January 2024. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
  9. ^ Contreras Real, Carlos (13 January 2024). "Melodi Grand Prix 2024: Gothminister, Ingrid Jasmin y Margaret Berger primeros clasificados para la final de la preselección noruega" [Melodi Grand Prix 2024: Gothminister, Ingrid Jasmin and Margaret Berger are the first qualifiers for the final of the Norwegian preselection]. ESCplus España (in European Spanish). Retrieved 13 January 2024.