“When you have privileges, you have them all the time… Having them, not wanting them… seeing them, not being them, not being them? Well that’s the privilege of privileges.” – ‘Let’s Talk About Privileges’ Molly Nilsson.
Berlin based Swedish DIY pop auteur Molly Nilsson has announced the release of a new album, ‘Imaginations’ to surface in January. It will come less than 18 months after the excellent Zenith, continuing her prolific output. This will be her seventh album since 2008. To mark the momentous occasion, she has released the album’s vitally relevant second single, ‘Let’s Talk About Privileges’, complete with a JLH Miller video with visuals to mark the track’s urban and nocturnal like pop sensibilities and superimposed lyrics so no-one is in doubt as to the subject matter.
It’s a treatise on rampant inequality and the lack of acknowledgement of the privileges and special opportunities enjoyed by those who either perpetuate or benefit from it. While she never explains who she has in the crosshairs or explicitly mentions that these privileges and opportunities have been largely won and continue to be exercised on the back of those who have the least or those least able to fight back, she doesn’t have to. Historical contexts and contemporary realities about class, culture and gender point them out for all of us.
‘Let’s Talk About Privileges’ once again highlights Nilsson’s consistent ability to address vital issues fearlessly within a subtle pop framework. It also underscores and reminds us of the humility that characterises DIY and independent artists like her. And there many who are willing to not only call out the wrongs of the societies they belong to but also recognise their connection to the contexts that produce them.
Imaginations is out on January 24 through her own imprint Dark Skies Association in conjunction with Glasgow label Night School Records. Cannot wait!
Let’s Talk About Privileges
Molly Nilsson (SWE)
From the forthcoming album, ‘Imaginations’, Night Skies Association/Night School Records. Out Jan 24.
Molly Nilsson Facebook
Official Video