Clean, natural, understated: These are just a few of the adjectives you’ll find in the glowing comments below 22-year-old pop wunderkind Sigrid‘s music video for her 2017 hit "Strangers." Born in 1996 in Ålesund, Norway, a seaside town of less than 48,000 where the temperature never rises above 65º, not even in July, Sigrid Solbakk Raabe (who’s on a first-name basis with her devoted following) arrived on the European pop scene less than two years ago with her dancy, infectious pop EP "Don’t Kill My Vibe." The breakout star’s very first full album, Sucker Punch, drops today.
It’s in large part the juxtaposition of Sigrid’s no-frills style and high-energy tunes that make her so mesmerizing to her young fans. "I love how she’s always in jeans and a plain shirt for every video," says another gushingly positive YouTube comment.
In anticipation of her album, Sigrid played a single New York City promo show on February 20. Two days before, she and I met up for tea in Manhattan for an interview. Sigrid arrived fresh-faced in a red wool crew-neck and simple gold pendant she’d bought while vintage-shopping in Brooklyn the day before. Vintage jeans, a thin black turtleneck, and Chuck Taylors completed her look. This is Sigrid’s uniform.
"I figured out really quickly that I was most comfortable in jeans and a T-shirt," Sigrid explains of her signature style, which is almost the same in real life and on stage. "I guess that could be seen as some sort of a statement, but from my end, it’s mostly just what I can move around in. I’m up there singing and trying to do my job." As a spectator, Sigrid loves seeing ornate costumes on stage at a pop show as much as anyone. "I mean, Ariana Grande is one of my favorite artists," she says. "But it’s up to each artist how they want to express themselves, and wearing these simple clothes just makes me feel like me. It also feels good to know that this is one thing that hasn’t changed. My whole life has changed so much these past couple years, but I like knowing that I would still wear this to school. That part of me is still the same."
To learn more about Sigrid’s low-key Norwegian style basics, just keep scrolling.
Source: Who What Wear – Amanda Montell