Emma Steinbakken: Norway’s Next Big Pop Export

Emma Steinbakken: Norway’s Next Big Pop Export

Fifteen and Fearless

Emma Steinbakken was ten years old when she started singing, and the stage found her early: in late 2017 she performed in a local production of Annie, and the experience only sharpened her appetite for performing. Two years later, at fifteen, she made her official debut as a singer-songwriter — first with “Without You,” then with “Not Gonna Cry.” In the crowded field of teenage pop debuts, hers stood out for an unusual maturity: the songs were sad, literate and melodically assured, the work of someone who had clearly been listening closely to the sad and dark poetry she has cited as an inspiration.

The debut singles did their job. “Not Gonna Cry” put her on the map in Norway; “Without You” showed she could write the kind of melancholy pop ballad that travels. Before she was old enough to finish school, Steinbakken had a self-titled debut album out — released in the latter half of 2019, featuring the singles “Not Gonna Cry” and “Never Forgiving” — and an appearance on Fredrik Skavlan’s talk show, the traditional coronation for a new Norwegian star. The industry had noticed. The question was whether the public would follow.

The Chart Breakthrough

They did, and faster than anyone expected. Through 2020 Steinbakken released a string of singles, including the Matoma collaboration “Wow” and “Stay With Me,” written for the second season of the TV series Home for Christmas. “Stay With Me” became a national hit in 2021, reaching number 18 on the Norwegian charts and holding in the Top 40 for a month.

Then came the song that changed everything: “Jeg glemmer deg aldri,” from the series Rådebank. Sung in Norwegian — a notable shift for an artist who had debuted in English — it rocketed to number 1 and stayed in the Top 40 for fifteen consecutive weeks. It remains one of her defining records: proof that she could carry a song in her own language to the very top of the charts, and a signal to the industry that her audience was not a niche but the mainstream.

The hits kept coming. She appeared on Alan Walker’s “Not You” in late 2021, a collaboration that put her voice in front of a global streaming audience. In 2022 she joined the cast of Hver gang vi møtes, Norway’s beloved music series, where her performance of “Floden” reached number 5 that December. In 2023 she returned to the show and did it again: “Delilah” went to number 1, and her second album Home — released that June — peaked at number 2 on the Norwegian album chart.

The Bilingual Bet

One of the most interesting things about Steinbakken’s rise is the language question. Norwegian pop exports have traditionally sung in English — it is the price of admission to the international market. Steinbakken started there, with “Without You” and “Not Gonna Cry,” but her biggest domestic hits have been in Norwegian: “Jeg glemmer deg aldri,” “Floden,” “Delilah.” Rather than choosing between the two, she has simply done both, building a catalogue that works in either language.

It is a strategy that reflects how the modern streaming market actually works. A generation ago, a Norwegian-language hit was a ceiling; today, with algorithmic discovery and playlist culture, it is a foundation. Steinbakken’s Norwegian hits built her a domestic audience of genuine scale — the kind of base that lets an artist tour, headline and sustain a career — while her English-language work and high-profile collaborations keep the international door open.

The Christmas Chapter

In November 2024 she added another string to her bow with Emmas jul, a Christmas album that peaked at number 3 — her third consecutive top-three album. The Christmas record is a shrewd move in the Norwegian market, where seasonal albums are a reliable institution, and it showed an artist thinking about her career in decades rather than singles. By 2026 she was headlining her own Christmas concert series, including a show at Oslo Spektrum — the kind of venue that marks an artist’s arrival as a national headliner.

Why the “Next Export” Tag Fits

Norway has a long history of pop artists who conquered at home and then made the leap: the question is always which one is next. Steinbakken’s case rests on verifiable foundations rather than hype. She debuted at fifteen and was charting nationally by seventeen. She has multiple number-one singles, a number-two album, a major international collaboration, and a live profile that now includes arena-scale Christmas shows — all before turning 23.

What sets her apart from the typical teenage breakthrough is the songwriting. From the start, her material has been hers: introspective, melody-driven pop that treats young listeners as adults. The sad poetry she read as a teenager became the emotional vocabulary of her songs, and that emotional directness is precisely what travels across borders.

The next step — the one that turns a Norwegian star into an international one — is still ahead of her. But the trajectory is unmistakable. From “Without You” at fifteen to the top of the Norwegian charts in two languages, Emma Steinbakken has done everything a future pop export is supposed to do. The rest of the world just hasn’t caught up yet.

Emma Steinbakken: The Hits, Year by Year

The chart record is the strongest argument for the “next export” tag — and it is unusually dense for someone this young:

The streaming footprint backs it up: “Not You” has passed 100 million Spotify streams, while “Floden” and “Jeg glemmer deg aldri” sit in the tens of millions — domestic hits with international-scale numbers, per public Spotify chart trackers.

The Awards Shelf

Norwegian music institutions noticed early. According to music databases, Steinbakken took Artist of the Year at P3 Gull 2023, then Song of the Year and Breakthrough Artist at the 2023 Spellemannprisen — a combination that says the industry sees both the songs and the trajectory. The Home album cycle (released on Columbia, a Sony label; the Christmas follow-up Emmas jul on ADA Nordic) also marked her arrival in the major-label system — a different machine from the indie route, but one she entered with a chart record already built.

The Hver gang vi møtes appearances deserve special mention: the series is Norway’s most reliable hit-making machine, and Steinbakken used it twice — “Floden” in 2022 and “Delilah” in 2023, both #1s. Few artists have converted two appearances into two chart-toppers.

What’s Next

The domestic case is closed: multiple #1 singles, a #2 album, a #3 Christmas record, arena-scale seasonal shows. The emma steinbakken without you to export question is now purely about geography. Her English-language material and the Alan Walker connection keep the international door open; the 2025–26 collaborations with Synne Vo show she is still expanding her Norwegian-language reach too. The next album cycle — and whether it leads with English — will be the one the rest of the world is watching.

FAQ

How old is Emma Steinbakken?

She was born on 10 March 2003 in Jessheim, Norway — which made her 15 going on 16 when her debut singles arrived in 2019, and 23 in 2026.

Where is Emma Steinbakken from?

Jessheim, in Ullensaker municipality in southeastern Norway — the same commuter-belt region that has produced several of the country’s recent pop acts.

What was Emma Steinbakken’s debut song?

“Without You” (2019), followed by “Not Gonna Cry” — both released when she was 15 going on 16, establishing the sad, literate pop-ballad style that became her signature.

What is Emma Steinbakken’s biggest song?

By chart performance: “Jeg glemmer deg aldri (fra Rådebank)” — her first #1, with fifteen straight weeks in the Norwegian Top 40 — alongside fellow #1s “Floden” and “Delilah.” By streams, Alan Walker’s “Not You” (on which she is featured) leads by a wide margin.

Has Emma Steinbakken won a Spellemannprisen?

Yes — according to music databases, she won Song of the Year and Breakthrough Artist at the 2023 Spellemannprisen, plus Artist of the Year at P3 Gull the same year.

What is Hver gang vi møtes?

Norway’s beloved music series in which established artists interpret each other’s songs. Steinbakken appeared in both 2022 and 2023, turning both appearances into #1 singles (“Floden,” then “Delilah”).

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