Make music with the world stars – but there’s something the duo longs for
Published 2024-04-01 22.58
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They collaborate with world artists, create mass hysteria in Japan – and earn a million kroner in advance per song.
Still, there is one thing that rubs off.
– It would be fun to be recognized at home, say the Swedish doldis hitmakers, Tobias Danielsson, 25, and Samuel Brandt, 23.
- Swedish music producers NOTD, Tobias Danielsson and Samuel Brandt, are underground in Sweden but create mass hysteria in Japan and collaborate with world artists.
- The artist duo began their career on Soundcloud. Their remixes attracted the attention of superstars, and they now earn a million kroner per song.
- NOTD has moved permanently to Los Angeles, but dreams of recognition at home.
ⓘ The summary is made with the support of AI tools from OpenAI and quality assured by Aftonbladet. Read our AI policy here.
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THE ANGELS. It all started with a tentative message from a fourteen-year-old in Trollhättan.
“We should do something together.”
Samuel Brandt contacted the two years older Tobias Danielsson in Älmhult, because he appreciated Tobias’ songs on the music platform Soundcloud.
They immediately took a liking to each other’s remixes and then, by pure chance, started at the same high school.
Voila, a new Swedish music collaboration was born: NOTD.
– None of us ever thought it would become serious, says Tobias.
Nevertheless, it wasn’t long before they were talking to a manager and their songs were being streamed by millions. The first money trickled in: SEK 7,500. Jackpot in a teenager’s world.
– We went to high school, and just “Wow! Imagine if we could live off the music,” says Tobias.
Ten years later, it’s pocket money. The artist duo goes on tour all over the USA, the concerts sell out in New York and LA, they are invited to the Grammy after-party with superstars – and earn one million kroner per song.
And they are now based in the city of dreams – Los Angeles.
Samuel Brandt and Tobias Danielsson. Photo: Nora Savosnick
The thunderclouds have just dispersed over their new home at the address “Sunshine Terrace”.
Tobias and Samuel splash through the puddles on the terrace and look towards the mountains; all of “the Valley” lies below, embedded in pink veils of mist after the sky opens and closes like a faucet.
– Sometimes it can be a bit “overwhelming” that the city is so big, says Samuel about the 15-million-strong metropolis.
– I don’t think many Swedes understand that it can take two hours to travel alone within THE.
For several years, the duo shuttled between Sweden and Los Angeles. But last winter they decided to move more permanently.
If you want to conquer the music industry, this is the place to be.
Photo: Nora Savosnick
Inside the glass doors, the electric guitar is on the floor. The laptop is folded up on the table. Tobias scrolls through the audio files.
Drömmen is an album of its own with original songs. But what once catapulted them to success were remixes, which caught the attention of world artists. First illegal ones.
Like when they uploaded a bootleg version of Ed Sheeran’s mega hit “Shape of you”. The song received spins on the internet and many millions of listens.
Then the unlikely happened.
The singer’s manager got in touch: Do you want to release the remix officially – with Sheeran?
– It was extra fat that time, because we had made it illegal at first. They had found it and thought it was so fat that they wanted to do something, says Samuel.
– We received confirmation that what we are doing works.
arrow-leftpreviousarrow-rightnextThey think that so many people come to their concerts is surreal.
1 of 3 Photo: Private
The rest happened just the speed. They released remixes at a furious pace with Shawn Mendes, Rihanna, Demi Lovato, Sia.
– All those remixes were completely unimaginable. Those are artists you have listened to for so long, the elite in the music industry. I don’t think any of us understood, it just happened, says Tobias.
For the past few months, they’ve been on a tour of their own, with concerts from coast to coast of America. Los Angeles and New York were completely sold out, with 1,300 in the audience – their biggest headline concert to date.
– We are just two kids from Sweden, and that so many people want to come and watch us. It’s absolutely crazy, says Tobias.
– It still feels surreal. Then there are moments when you stop and feel “woah”.
Such a moment can be right when they step out on stage, and see the crowd singing along to every single song. Otherwise, listenings are just numbers online, but suddenly you see the imprint that the songs have made, says Tobias.
At a gig, with more artists, there were as many as 15,000 in the sea of people. Then the hands shook before.
– You get such adrenaline that it feels like a blackout, he continues.
Photo: Nora Savosnick Photo: Nora Savosnick
The house they rent furnished in LA stands in stark contrast to two guys in their 20s.
On the walls hang paintings with Chanel perfumes and heels. A huge glitter screw lamp is the centerpiece of the entire living room.
– Yes, we are semi-furnished, you could say, bought a couple of pieces of furniture at Ikea, explains Tobias.
On stage, the duo gets thousands of people bouncing to every single EDM beat, but in everyday life they can feel more withdrawn.
Like when they were at Grammyfest, hosted by Shawn Mendes. All the cream of the crop was there; Lewis Capaldi, Camila Cabello, Niall Horan, ex-member of One Direction.
– We’re bad at mingling – we mostly stood there, and that’s it “this”says Tobias and waves robotically, as an illustration of Swedish elevator mood.
– We come from small towns in Sweden, where not much happens. Then you come here, go to big events, then we felt: How the hell do you talk to people now?, he says.
– But we have gotten better at it.
Photo: Nora Savosnick
Over the years, they have time and again got songs into the top charts in the US. Sold gold and platinum – which only a few Swedish artists have managed to do throughout the ages. But the mass hysteria reached a new fever pitch when they went to Japan last fall.
Then fans tried to climb into their car, surrounded them, met them at the airport, knocked on the windows and filmed inside the car.
– We just, “what happened?”. It was a crazy experience, says Tobias.
– We had never been involved in that before. It was very weird. Japan is so far from home, felt like another world. Still, people recognized us. Fat strange, adds Samuel.
Photo: Nora Savosnick
They disappear downstairs. Tobias pulls out a can of food from the fridge. Opens the lid.
A brown bug hides inside.
– Yes, it doesn’t look very pretty, he laughs.
It is yesterday’s cookie, which he has baked himself.
– At least it was good.
When homesickness gets too much, a nostalgic sweet can soothe, at least temporarily. Swedish cakes and salt licorice are hard currency.
On the kitchen counter is a fishing hat that looks like it was sewn into Ikea’s classic carrier bags, with NOTD in yellow text. Potential merch for the duo going forward, they say.
Tobias puts his hat on his head and reflects. We joke that, as Älmhult’s son, he should become an ambassador for the furniture giant.
– Sicksays Samuel.
There are “ups-and-downs” with living here, they say with English injected into the Western Gothic and Småland: Working hours basically don’t exist. The more businessand less love for music, for better or for worse.
They do not know how long they will stay in the United States. After all, Sweden still feels like home. They have so far released one song in Swedish, together with pop queen Veronica Maggio.
But despite Japanese fan hysteria, millions raining and accolades in the US, they remain totally unknown as artists at home, they say.
It stings a little.
Sometimes at least.
– Sweden is still our home country. It would have been fun with a little recognitionsays Tobias.
– But it will come along the way.
Photo: Nora Savosnick FACTS
NOTD
Name: Samuel Brandt and Tobias Danielsson, 23 and 25 years old.
From: Trollhättan and Älmhult.
Bor: The Angels.
EDM duo NOTD (pronounced noted). The name is an amalgamation of the last letters of their last name.
Read more Aftonbladet’s team Nora Savosnick and Emelie Svensson on location in Los Angeles.
