By: Yomna Walid
International Eurovision star Alexander Rybak has spoken exclusively to NileFM about his new album "Fairytales Too," reflecting on fame, mental health, and life more than a decade after his Eurovision breakthrough.
The Belarusian-Norwegian singer, songwriter, and violinist rose to global prominence after winning the Eurovision Song Contest in 2009 with "Fairytale," a song that has since become one of the competition&rsquo;s most successful tracks, amassing more than 500 million streams on Spotify and over 124 million views on YouTube.
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Now, with the release of his seventh studio album in early 2026, Rybak says &lsquo;Fairytales Too&rsquo; marks his most personal work to date, exploring themes of love, heartbreak and personal growth. In his interview with NileFM, he opens up about the pressures of international fame, his creative evolution, and the stories behind his most intimate songs.
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Your new album "Fairytales Too" feels very personal. Can you tell us the story behind it and the mindset you were in while creating it? Also, how has your acting experience shaped the way you tell stories in your music?
Good observations! It is indeed very personal, maybe my most personal album ever, especially as I am singing about very difficult topics like heavy breakups and drug addiction. But I also make fun of trends, like calling your ex a &ldquo;psychopath&rdquo;.
Early on, I decided that this album would not only be about me, but about life in general. I&rsquo;m happy that many of the songs are about &ldquo;him and her,&rdquo; because these themes can really be relatable for many people.
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Being raised by two professional musicians must have been unique. Can you share a memory from your childhood that shaped who you are as an artist today?
Honestly, it&rsquo;s not up to me to decide how unique it was. A child kind of accepts his reality as &ldquo;normal,&rdquo; and if my family dressed up as elephants on Saturdays, I would probably think other families did that as well. So to me, it was quite normal to have musically talented parents. Music was as natural as air in our home.
What I am most happy about, though, is the fact that I had strict parents. They taught me the value of practising every day and honouring my talent. But they did all of that with lots of love, and that is the key to my success, if you ask me.
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&ldquo;Fairytale&rdquo; became such an iconic song. Can you take us back to when you wrote it and share how it felt to see it change your life? Also, what inspired your 2018 comeback, and how did it feel returning to Eurovision after nearly a decade?
Sometimes I still can&rsquo;t believe how popular Fairytale is around 300,000 streams every day, even now, many years later. It&rsquo;s funny how a song inspired by a Saturday trip to the Norwegian mountains ended up becoming my calling card forever. This is what most artists dream of, so I guess I&rsquo;m living the dream.
As for my 2018 Eurovision song, "That&rsquo;s How You Write a Song," I appreciate you calling it a hit, but to be honest, it turned out to be a song for the specially interested. On the other hand, those who needed that song at that time have expressed how grateful they are for it, and that&rsquo;s the only thing I need to hear.
And now, with Rise, I hope I&rsquo;ve created another Eurovision song that will reach the people it needs to reach.
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Winning Eurovision catapulted you into global fame almost overnight. What was life really like after the applause stopped, and how did that experience shape your perspective on success and personal growth?
Once I got used to the &ldquo;windy climate&rdquo; at the very top, with all the trolls and haters, I started to enjoy how vast the music business is and how interesting and fulfilling it can be to collaborate with other talents.
I&rsquo;ve created my own children&rsquo;s musical, and I also enjoy doing different stunts on TikTok and Instagram, where I can be a bit goofier.
Now, my biggest dream after finishing my master&rsquo;s studies in Film Music at Columbia College is to find a like-minded movie director in need of some awesome, adventurous film music.
You&rsquo;ve spoken openly about choosing mental health over constant exposure. Looking back now, how important was stepping away, and what did that decision teach you about yourself and your relationship with music?
It has helped my mental health a lot not to be visible all the time. I kind of understand that as an artist, I need to be &ldquo;out there&rdquo; to stay relevant, but I feel it&rsquo;s much more important to be one with nature.
One bonus of not being too caught up in fame is that new music ideas come more easily once I am &ldquo;at peace.&rdquo;
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In Fairytales Too, is there one song that was especially challenging or emotionally demanding to create a track you feel represents your journey from Fairytale to reality the most?
Definitely "The Breakup.' It was difficult to look at a relationship from both sides, but I feel I managed to capture the essence of heartbreak. However, "Rise" is the song I&rsquo;ve worked on the most, as it&rsquo;s my call to action for everyone who needs to stand up for themselves.
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You have a strong fanbase in Egypt who truly admire your music. What would you like to say to your Egyptian audience, and if you were to visit Egypt one day, what would you love to experience there?
I&rsquo;ve only been to Egypt once, on a brief vacation. I loved how real and down-to-earth the people were, I don&rsquo;t remember the village name, but it&rsquo;s an honour for me that such genuine people have also connected with my music.
Maybe I&rsquo;ll even be lucky enough to find a movie director in Egypt and create some magical film music there.
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Photo Credit: Alexander Rybak&rsquo;s official page

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