The earliest traces of Danish music go back to the many twisting Bronze-Age horns or lurs which some experts have identified as musical instruments. They have been discovered in various parts of Scandinavia, mostly Denmark, since the end of the 18th century. Denmark's most famous classical composer is Carl Nielsen, especially remembered for his six symphonies, while the Royal Danish Ballet specializes in the work of Danish choreographer August Bournonville. Danes have distinguished themselves as jazz musicians, and the Copenhagen Jazz Festival has acquired an international reputation. The modern pop and rock scene has produced a few names of note, including MØ, Dizzy Mizz Lizzy, Lukas Graham, D-A-D, Tina Dico, Aqua, The Raveonettes, Michael Learns to Rock, Volbeat, Alphabeat, Safri Duo, Medina, Oh Land, Kashmir, King Diamond, Outlandish, and Mew. Lars Ulrich is the first Danish musician to be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Mustafa Gündoğdu, best known under his stage name Mousse T., is a German-Turkish DJ, record producer, film composer and judge on season 15 of Deutschland sucht den Superstar, the German version of Pop Idol. He is best known for the 1998 house hit "Horny '98" and for his collaboration with Tom Jones on the 2000 hit "Sex Bomb", from Jones' 1999 album Reload.
Safri Duo is a Danish electronic percussion duo composed of Uffe Savery and Morten Friis. Initially classically oriented, they later made a track mixing both tribal sound and modern electronica. Released in 2000, "Played-A-Live ", became one of the most popular songs in Europe in 2001. The single and subsequent album, Episode II each sold one million units worldwide, making Safri Duo the most internationally successful Danish act since Aqua.
Episode II is the first mainstream studio album by Danish percussion duo Safri Duo, who released six classical albums before its breakthrough with the Michael Parsberg-produced hit "Played-A-Live", the opening track of the album. It was released on May 28, 2001, and reissued in 2002 with two additional tracks, including a cover version of "Sweet Freedom" with vocals by American R&B/soul singer Michael McDonald. Later the same year a Remix Edition of the album was released, which included an additional disc with remixes by artists such as Airscape, Cosmic Gate and Future Breeze.
Remee Sigvardt Jackman, better known as Remee, is a Danish rapper, songwriter, producer and composer.
The Danish Music Awards (DMA) is a Danish award show. The show has been arranged by IFPI since 1989, and was originally called IFPI-prisen ("IFPI-Award") until 1991, when it changed its name to Dansk Grammy. It was changed to its current name, Danish Music Awards in 2001, after the American Grammy Awards registered the name "Grammy" as their trademark. In 2011, IFPI joined together with TV2 and KODA to present the awards ceremony.
Lene Grawford Nystrøm is a Norwegian musician, singer-songwriter and actress who is the female lead vocalist of the Danish-Norwegian Eurodance group Aqua.
Alphabeat were a Danish pop band from Silkeborg, fronted by singers Stine Bramsen and Anders Stig Gehrt Nielsen. Their single "Fascination" was a major hit in Denmark during the summer of 2006, as well as the United Kingdom in 2008. Their 2007 eponymous debut album reached number two in Denmark and was certified Platinum. Following its wide release in Europe in 2008, retitled This is Alphabeat, it reached number ten in the UK and was certified Gold in the region. The album also contains their first number one hit in Denmark, "10.000 Nights of Thunder".
Thomas Helmig is a Danish rock singer and musician, and has been one of the most popular singers in Denmark since the middle of the 1980s.
"Played-A-Live " is a song by Danish percussion duo Safri Duo. It was released in November 2000 as the lead single from their first mainstream studio album, Episode II. The Michael Parsberg-produced song, which has a mix of tribal drums with electronic music twists, sold 1.5 million copies worldwide and became the fourth-fastest-selling single ever in Europe. The single topped the Danish Singles Chart. Outside Denmark, the single also topped the Swiss Singles Chart and peaked at number two in the Netherlands, Germany, and Belgium. It reached number six in the United Kingdom and number seven on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart.
Mohamed Ahmed Ali, also known by the mononym Mohamed, is a Danish singer. Ali was born in Nørresundby, Aalborg. In 2009, he took part in Season 2 of The X Factor, coming third after winner Linda Andrews and runners up Alien Beat Club. After the series, he signed a contract with Sony Music. On the occasion, Karina Foss Fenn of Sony Music Entertainment Denmark was quoted as saying: "It is rare that we in the music industry encounter a natural talent like Mohamed Ali. Both in his vocals and his physique, he oozes musicality – and his voice has both power and a sweetness that makes his rhythm quite unique." The music will no doubt to reflect Mohamed's personality". This contract resulted in a debut album Keep It Simple of 12 original songs and his single "Rocket" became one of the best downloaded songs.
"In Love with a DJ" is a 2010 song by the singer CeCe Peniston and producer Ron Carroll.
A Friend in London was a Danish pop rock and rock band that represented Denmark in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 in Düsseldorf, Germany, with the song "New Tomorrow" and took fifth place in the final with 134 points. The group announced their split in 2014.
Iain James Farquharson, more commonly known as Iain James or Sparx, is a British singer, songwriter and vocal producer from Bristol, but based in London. He started as part of the British boyband Triple 8 in 2003 as their lead singer and known as Sparx. He left after the band had two Top 10 hits and was replaced by Stewart Macintosh in 2005.
ItaloBrothers is a German dance project from Nordhorn, Germany. The band consists of vocalist Mathias Metten, who works in the studio with Zacharias Adrian and Christian Müller. As of 2022, there are four members; Mathias Metten, Kristian Sandberg, Hanno Lohse, and Dietmar Pollmann. They are most successful in Scandinavia and Central Europe, but also have gone on tour in Eastern Europe. They release all their songs on Zooland Records. Their most successful singles to date include: "Stamp on the Ground", "My Life Is a Party", "This Is Nightlife" and "Summer Air". Their latest track as of April 2023 is “Live 4 Ever” with Neptunica.
Karen Marie Aagaard Ørsted Andersen, known professionally as MØ, is a Danish singer and songwriter. She began her career in the mid-2000s as a member of the punk duo MOR and releasing a handful of side projects. After MOR disbanded in 2012, MØ signed a recording contract with Sony Music Entertainment, releasing her debut extended play, Bikini Daze (2013), and her debut studio album, No Mythologies to Follow (2014).
Denmark participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Cliche Love Song" written by Lasse Lindorff, Kim Nowak-Zorde, Daniel Fält and Basim. The song was performed by Basim. In addition to participating in the contest, the Danish broadcaster DR also hosted the Eurovision Song Contest after winning the competition in 2013 with the song "Only Teardrops" performed by Emmelie de Forest. DR organised the national final Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2014 in order to select the Danish entry for the 2014 contest in Copenhagen. Ten songs competed in a televised show where "Cliche Love Song" performed by Basim was the winner as decided upon through the combination of jury voting and public voting over two rounds.
Patrick Spiegelberg is a Danish singer, songwriter, dancer, choreographer and vocal producer. He has also performed with the stage name Glamboy P, and has earlier used the names Patrick Hellegård and Rick Spiegel.
Nicole Stokholm Pedersen, known professionally as Sada Vidoo, is a Danish singer and songwriter. She is best known for taking part in series thirteen of The X Factor UK and Dansk Melodi Grand Prix 2017.
Trampthology is the first greatest hits album by former White Lion and Freak of Nature lead singer Mike Tramp, released on December 18, 2020, through Mighty Music/Target Records. The album was released to celebrate Tramp's 25th anniversary as a solo artist.
