Last week, a debate was sparked over Ms. Snusk's collaboration with the Sweden Democrats, as the artist is performing during the party's election campaign and has released a song together with party leader Jimmie Åkesson's (SD) dance band.
The Sweden Democrats' press contact says that it was Ms. Snusk who contacted the party. According to experts, it is unusual for artists to want to be associated with a specific party, let alone be linked to a right-wing party of that kind.
Wanted to spark public debate
I was quite surprised, says Bengt Johansson, a researcher in political communication at the University of Gothenburg, adding:
Artists have lent themselves to certain issues, such as supporting Palestine or the climate issue, but being linked to political parties has not been as common in recent decades.
The creator behind Fröken Snusk, Rasmus Gozzi, believes that one of the reasons for the collaboration with SD was that he wanted to spark public debate. He feels that cultural Sweden has been dominated by artists with socialist and left-wing views.
Which is completely okay, but I also think that people who think differently have not dared to express themselves, Rasmus Gozzi tells TT.
Artists' protests in the US
In Sweden, parties have used artists in various ways, but the phenomenon is more common in the US, says Orla Vigsö, professor of media communication at the University of Gothenburg.
Some have done it successfully and in other cases it has ended with sharp reprimands from the artists. It is always easier if you ask beforehand, says Vigsö.
Bad Bunny is an artist who has been critical of Trump. When he headlined the Super Bowl halftime show this year, the widow of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk tried to counter by booking other artists during the same time slot. Trump-hating Kid Rock ended up being the headliner.
Under the current Trump administration, several artists have spoken out when their music was used in political contexts. In July, singer Katy Perry was appalled by how the White House used her song “Firework” in a TikTok post about Iran, featuring images of bomb explosions.
The Democrats have not had such problems, as people, for example, were proud to be associated with Barack Obama, says Orla Vigsö.
Parties using artists and other famous faces in political contexts is a recurring concept during election campaigns. Here are some examples of artists who have participated on behalf of the parties:
Cornelis Vreeswijk was involved in both the VPK and the Social Democrats, when he played at election rallies.
Wille Crafoord gained attention when he stood up for the Moderate Party with his songs in the early 2000s.
Before the 2010 election campaign, Linda Bengtzing was the sing-along leader in the Center Party's sing-along tour.
Silvana Imam made a music video with Feminist Initiative in 2014, when the party made an election album that also featured artists such as Cleo, Familjen and Ane Brun.
This year, Eva Dahlgren will speak at the Social Democrats' election kickoff and Ms. Snusk will perform for the Sweden Democrats.
