Zara Larsson Found True Freedom in Her Midnight Sun Era

I know Zara Larsson will read every single word of this interview. Whether it makes the rounds on X, TikTok, Instagram, or just flat-out Google.com, Sweden’s pop princess is chronically online. She comments on fans’ TikToks, reposts moments from her dazzling tour, and yes, will even confront you in person about a poorly lit Reel you posted of her. When we saw one another at the Grammy Awards just a few weeks back, she looked me dead in the eye, with her signature smile and laugh, and said, “I saw that. How’s the lighting today?”

Larsson is wickedly funny. She tells wild stories and spits out jokes on TikTok, earning millions of views and going viral regularly. In interviews, she’ll drop a few quotes that make you belly laugh (“It’s going to be a motherquake,” she says when I ask her about her upcoming deluxe album). She recently posted on Instagram Story that her ab routine is simply laughing.

Midnight Sun, Larsson’s newest and fifth album, is a representation of pure happiness. Celebrating the joys of summer, the project was released last September, and with every moment that passes, it seems to become more powerful. By February, she was performing at the Grammys pre-show. She’s starring in a campaign with Urban Outfitters. And just a few days ago, she went No. 1 on the Spotify Global Top 50 list with PinkPantheress for their collab, “Stateside,” thanks in part to a routine by Olympic gold medalist Alysa Liu.

Larsson’s success, over a decade after her 2014 debut album, follows years of hard work, dedication, and yes, flopping. The difference now? Her music is unabashedly Zara. “The core of Midnight Sun is the core of me,” she says. “It’s the joy.”

Last week, before her second show in Los Angeles, Larsson spent a few minutes with ELLE to chat about this moment in her career, from her sold-out shows to her viral moments to her in-person activism. The star opens up in a no-holds-barred interview.

I was at your show last Wednesday. It was so good.

I have so much fun. I really enjoy it. Now we’re getting into the show flow of it all. And I’m just really excited for the rest of the tour. I feel like it’s going to be so much fun. I’m super excited.

When tickets for this tour went on sale, it was right before your explosion. That means the rooms you’re playing in are for fans who were with you right before you blew up. What does that mean to you?

I remember putting the tickets on sale at the same time as the album came out, just like, “Hey, album out, going on tour, see you in a few months.” Obviously you want to have faith and believe in what you do, but you can’t really calculate what’s going to happen, ever. I haven’t really toured much in the U.S., and I definitely haven’t done a proper tour this size. Any promoter would’ve never said yes to me [or said] like, “Actually, I think we should book a bigger venue,” because I haven’t done this before.

I never could have guessed what would’ve happened the past couple of months with “Midnight Sun,” with “Stateside,” with “Lush Life” [which was originally released in 2015] having a resurgence. There’s just been so many stars that have aligned for me right now. It’s really, really exciting because in a way, this is such a fun show that I get to do with the girls on stage, but it’s also quite an intimate show. The show is basically just me. It’s the band. It’s the dancers. It’s the outfits. It’s the lights. It’s very simple, is what it is. But I think it’s the last time, hopefully, with humbleness and love, that I will play in venues of this size. I’m really excited for that.

Larsson performs “Midnight Sun” in Los Angeles.

Since you’re thinking about your next steps, I’m wondering if you’re planning on keeping this aesthetic moving forward. Your past albums had different vibes, but this is clearly a moment that worked.

No, definitely. I feel like this is such an era for me. When people are like, “Oh, the rebrand is amazing.” I’m like, “What rebrand?” I didn’t have a brand to rebrand from.

I find it really difficult to stay consistent and be disciplined, because there’s so many things that I love. But with this era, I really feel like I have been disciplined and stuck to something that I feel like is so fun, colorful, and glittery.

I think a lot of the fashion people are really the gatekeepers of what is considered to be cool, or what culture is. Now, if I’m going to be front row at a fashion show, I want it to be because the brand loves me for my artistry and what I do. I love [this era]. It feels so me.

It’s going to develop, it’s going to evolve, but that goes hand in hand with summer, because summer is also when you feel the most free. Summertime arrives and you get access to the world. Nature is opening up again. You can go out, you can go have a picnic in the woods. I always do that with my friends every summer. You can go and swim in the lake. You can go to the beach. That sense of freedom is a big part of what I want to share with the world. I want people to feel free and happy when they come and see my show.

I always try to work with brands that my fans will connect with, and UO felt aligned for me. Especially being on tour, I do everything I can to connect with the community that supports me. Midnight Sun is about being free, feeling joy, and what you wear is a big part of that.

You’ve hinted at a deluxe album. What can you tell us?

I’m so excited for this deluxe. Summer truly isn’t over yet. Midnight Sun was released in September. It’s been brewing all year. I feel like this deluxe is just going to build onto that world that kind of already exists, but in a really fun, different way. I’m very proud of all the people that are a part of this project. I’ve never felt as accomplished as I do when I listen to these songs, because I feel like this is a really big deal for me. I want to do a proper rollout. I want to do the teasing of it all, the anticipation, the little Easter eggs. I’m very excited.

“Stateside” reached No. 1 on Spotify Global Top 50. How does that feel?

It feels so normal. I feel internally just the same. I’m happy for the opportunities that it will bring to me, and I think it just adds on to everything that’s happening. I say in my song, “The Ambition,” that I want a No. 1, but doesn’t everyone? Having a No. 1 is just a symptom of having people listening to the song. You know what I mean? It’s like, duh. What I really want is for people to connect with the music, for people to show up to my concerts, and for us to experience and make memories together. A bigger moment was to see Alyssa [Liu], for example, perform “Stateside” [at the Olympics]. That was a part of a cultural moment. It’s those moments where I’m like, Wow, I got to be a small part of that moment in history. That feels really powerful. When people come up to me and they’re like, “I got married to your song, ‘Symphony,’” those things where it’s like, I’m a part of people’s lives—that affects me.

Is that weird sometimes?

No, I love it. I get to be a part of people’s lives in their very special moments or even going through hard times, going through good times. I love that. My dreams and goals are to have people connect. I just want to connect with people at the end of the day.

I know everyone’s talking about the fucking Khia asylum. I’ve had big songs. I’ve had songs that have been streamed billions of times, but I’ve always craved to have a cultural impact. My biggest thing is my shows. That’s where I want people to come and enjoy. That’s really my number-one thing.

People also connect with you because of your social media presence. You just posted a TikTok about an early performance where people were throwing grapes at you. Did you try to catch any in your mouth?

[Laughs] No! That shit was so humiliating. It was just so funny when I saw that video on my For You Page. As I say in the video, I’ve been through it. I’ve been in parking lots. I’ve been in schools. I’ve really been grinding. I have never been too good for any stage.

Sometimes I think about that performance, and I remember I should tell the story. Never give up a story. I saw that video and I was like, “Oh my God, that is my grape date.” It was just so funny to me. Someone pointed out, which I didn’t even see, they were like, “Wow, there’s a grape right by her foot.” The grape was lying there. The evidence was right in the frame.

How do you approach social media?

What’s nice about TikTok is that you don’t have to have this aesthetic, really. TikTok is all about the substance, what you’re saying, how you are connecting with people through your personality. I only have personality videos. [People] might not have been through performing in a school where people throw grapes at them, but I think most people have been through something that feels awkward or a bit cringe, humiliating.

It’s important for the people who follow me to connect with the person I am. That’s why I also love to comment on people’s videos. I’m just a person who enjoys the internet, and I spend a lot of time here. I see everything you guys see. I’m just a girl with the phone.

You’re also very socially aware on TikTok. You posted a video recently about the taboo around abortion. Your takes always feel genuine. How did you develop this awareness?

How my brain is wired is that I think very clearly. I’m the best version of myself when I get to express myself and somewhat perform, but also to figure out who I am through other people, and having a dialogue with other people. My phone is where I figure out what I truly think about things. I’m fine-tuning it, and I’ve learned so much. It’s another reason why I like connecting with people.

I say I’m right about everything, but I’m also curious and I’m humble enough to learn new things. I just need to express myself and my opinions. I was way worse when I was younger. Now, my roots are very stable in the ground of who I am as a person.

You also walk the walk. I think about Portland Bike Bus, an organization that encourages kids to bike to school. You rode with the group one day, and you showed up.

I’m a stan on Bike Bus. I’ve been following them for years. Every time I see a video, I just cry. They invited me to that. I was like, “Oh, we’re fucking going.” I emailed them immediately. I love those videos. I love the initiative of it. I love what it’s doing for the community. I love what it’s doing for the kids. This is personal to me. I will be there. I will be there tomorrow, actually. Clear the schedule. I will be there.

I hope you get more experiences like that in your tour, too.

Me too. That’s what it’s all about. So many people [on the public relations or label side] were like, “That was an excellent PR move.” But for me, it genuinely wasn’t even that. I was like, “No, I’m so excited to do this.” That’s just how I live my life. Even with “Lush Life Girl” [when I invite a fan to dance with me on stage during the song] and “Stateside,” it just falls into place in a very natural way. You can always amplify what is happening around it, but everything is very organic, and it just comes from a genuine place. It just has to start from there. Then if [my PR] wants to take it to the press, that’s cool by me, but it has to feel like it’s genuine and it’s fun. That’s why I do it.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.