Last week, 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 that kind of right-wing party.
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 social 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.
