At the Oscars
There she was... and in she walked...
The voices buzzed around her as she entered the red carpet. She was wearing a golden headband that immediately grabbed attention. The green embroidery and gems complimented the blue and golden ear-rings, no doubt to enhance the colors of her eyes - which were painted with the familiar red stripes in the corners. She was a warrior queen, after all.
She wore a beautiful dress tinted in light green. It resembled a gi, the traditional karate uniform. Her jacket was armless, and a white belt was tied up around her waist - symmetrically decorated with red ornamental tassels. The loose pants was detailed with three rows of red fringes along her left thigh.
And her shoes? Of course, a warrior can’t wear high heels… She completed her dress with a pair of comfy-looking, white sneakers.
She glanced down. Found the central spot on the red carpet, and she stood up straight. A stiff smile crossed her face as she was met with flashes and commands. So much buzz. There were photographers all around her. She found her poise, hands held together on her back, and she turned this way and that way. Followed the instructions given by the people in charge of the ceremony.
-”Up here, to the camera!”
A male voice broke through the noise. -«Up here!»
She let down her shoulders for a moment, and a mischievous grin crossed her face. Her left leg backstepped, and she lifted both of her hands up to her face. With two pointy fingers, and a playful smile that touched her eyes for a second, she could just as well have shouted: “I see you! Thank you for being here!”
Her attention went back to the photographers. She regained her regal poise. Hands on her back, her legs gently crossed, and her back straight. Looking straight into cameras in front of her.
-”Thank you, Aurora”, a lady said.
With that, she stretched out her arms, as if she was about to lift up off the floor. Taking long strides as she left the red carpet.
Going back to 2014
Tom MacDougall, the executive vice president of music at Disney since Lion King, had his first glimpse of Aurora during an artist showcase back in 2014. “She’s incredible, isn’t she?” says MacDougall, “She’s got that Björk-like, ‘Wow, I’ve never seen anything like this’ quality.”1
After discovering her at the showcase, he had her record Baby Mine for the Dumbo trailer (2019). When Frozen 2 needed an ethereal voice, her Norwegian roots and distinct sound made her the perfect choice. “It was a no-brainer. She had to be our voice.”
Aurora herself states that she loves how Disney doesn’t underestimate children by shielding them from difficult topics:2
I always liked, as a child, that Disney movies were not afraid to be sad or horrible, I hate movies that clearly underestimate children, and I love the fact that, throughout the years, Disney has not.
It seems like Aurora has dealt with Disney on multiple occasions. She was also visiting the Walt Disney office the 4th of April 2016. She spoke about it during a Q&A before her acoustic concert at The Watermarke Tower in Los Angeles. She said that she loved everything Disney made, and that she had seen all of their movies. Her favourite, she said, was Hunchback of Notre Dame.3
Frozen 2
The first time we became aware of Aurora being part of Frozen 2, was in June 2019. She posted a trailer for Frozen 2 on X, with the caption “Listen closely”.4 That aroused a lot of excitement in the comments. The fact that she was indeed going to be a part of Disney’s Frozen 2 even made it into the national newspaper VG. It was then unclear how big part Aurora would have in the upcoming movie.5
Later, after the movie was released, Aurora did an interview with the Queencore podcast. There she spoke a bit of her role in Frozen 2:6
I think I was supposed to be the nature call, coming from Elsa's mother. But also, like, Mother Earth trying to connect her to whatever spiritual path she really had, you know? She was not supposed to be just a normal queen. She was supposed to be like a spiritual guidance of some kind. A bridge between the spirits and the world, which is incredibly beautiful. I felt so honored. It's so nice of Disney to give me such a beautiful part that i resonate so much with.
The way she got the part was rather quick and random, at least as Aurora herself recalls it; She was just having a normal day at her studio, when an unknown number called her phone. It was from the Disney team, and they asked if she could scream like a mountain. She said “yes”, and they asked if she could sing like a mountain, and she said “Yes, of course!”, and she was invited to do a gig for the movie.7
At the Oscars
It was almost like an early Christmas present when I first learned that Aurora might be heading for the Oscars. In December 2019, it was known that Into The Unknown had made it into the 15-track shortlist for possible nominees for best soundtrack. Beating even Taylor Swift, Aurora was written among names like Beyoncè and Elton John.8 And, indeed it went her way. In January 2020, it was announced that the song was eligible to win that thing!!! 9
-”A magical silly thing”, Aurora said to the Bergen Newspaper.10
Her time at the Oscars was documented in a video diary, offering us a glimpse behind the scenes. It’s in four part, so make sure you watch them all. Just see it through and wait for the next one to play 😍:
Before stepping onto the stage, she was interviewed inside the ballroom, where she once again shared her admiration for Disney’s ability to tell deep and meaningful stories without underestimating children. When asked how she connected with Frozen 2, she spoke about how Arendelle was based on a real place in Norway - Arendal. When asked about her outfit, she explained that she likes to dress comfortably, so she could do a cartwheel at any given moment.
As the lights dimmed, Aurora sang from the stairs leading down to the stage. Dressed in an outfit crafted by her sister, Viktoria, Aurora was striking. Viktoria, was, of course, proud of her work, but she didn’t milk the occasion to seek the spotlight.11
Idina Menzel and nine artists had brought Elsa’s voice to life all over the globe, but Aurora performed throughout it all. Menzel might have been the one who carried the lead, but it was Aurora’s ethereal call that echoed through The Oscars. As expected it was both haunting and beautiful, and she truly united every language the song was dubbed into. It was as with the film; everywhere in the world Into the Unknown and the Frozen 2 movie was played, it was Aurora who held the voice of the mountain.
Despite the honor of performing at such a huge event, Aurora remained true to herself, probably unaffected by it all:
It was a lot of fun, but not really my scene. It was a bit stiff. 12
I don’t get very nervous. I don’t spend energy on tomorrow’s adventure when I’m busy with today. I just have to do what I can—though this is really just a silly thing. Even though it matters for art, music, and film, it’s insignificant compared to the big things.13
Fun Fact:
Aurora has had contact with the film music industry on many occasion. Here you have a link to the trailer for Alien: Covenant.14
Fabrice’s corner - Community Spotlight
To give you all an overview of the immense work put down into his YouTube Archive, I have made a list that shows how many videos he has found and shared on his community page. This is only for the last two weeks:
- Added a new playlist: Live 2025 with 51 songs so far
- The remix of "Some Type Of Skin"
- Reactions: 15 videos
- Interviews: 1 video
- Stage talks and banters: 5 videos
- Recordings from her Manila show: 26 videos
- Full shows (or almost): 3 videos
- Vlog: 1 video
- Recordings from Kuala Lumpur: 3 videos
- Recordings from Malaysia: 3 videos
- Full shows (or almost): 1 video
- Recordings from Philippines: 8 videos
- Recordings from Singapore:
- Full show (or almost): 1 video
- Recordings from Fremantle: 9 videos
- Recordings from San Fransisco: 1 video
- Recordings from Sydney: 10 videos
-Full shows (or almost): 1 video
- Recordings from Melbourne: 15 videos
- The soundcheck: 1 video
Re-uploaded lost videos. These are uploaded after been granted permission from the owner when possible:
- Recordings from Boston: 4 videos
- Recordings from New York: 6 videos
Lost videos: 1 video
These are videos that are deleted from YouTube, and Fabrice hasn’t been able to get permission to re-upload them.
The updated HAIK video
Fabrice’s upload of The Seed from HAIK got 1 million views. That’s a lot!!! Don’t forget the amazingly great re-making of the whole HAIK documentary:
Final words
Phew - I almost ran out of time for this one. The ending may be a bit abrupt, but I hope it made some sense for you. Also - I figured that Fabrice deserved the Spotlight this time.
One more thing: For me, it’s still like this when I think about this event:
“SHE SANG AT THE OSCARS!!! 💚💚💚”
See you in two weeks.
Have a day💚
Rune
NOTE!
If you can’t get enough - There is a short interview here, where she says something funny about the fact that you must “behave at the Oscars…”😂
Sources
Oleksinski, J. 2019, Nov 21. " 'Frozen 2' has a secret weapon: singer Aurora". NY Post. Retrieved 2025, Feb 14 from: https://nypost.com/2019/11/21/meet-singer-aurora-the-secret-weapon-of-frozen-2/
Oleksinski, T. 2019, Nov 21. “Meet singer Aurora, the secret weapon of ‘Frozen 2’”. New York Post. Retrieved 2025, Feb 9 from https://nypost.com/2019/11/21/meet-singer-aurora-the-secret-weapon-of-frozen-2/#
YouTube. 2016, Apr 12. “Aurora Q&A”. One Little Warrior. Retrieved 2025, Feb 12 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ACRytdVmUNs
Aurora. 2019, Jun 12. “Listen closely”. X. Retrieved 2025, feb 12 from https://x.com/AURORAmusic/status/1138569304990015494
Talseth. T. 2019, Jun 12. “Aurora Aksnes synger i «Frozen 2»-traileren”. VG. Retrieved 2025, Feb 9 from https://www.vg.no/rampelys/i/xP9n8n/aurora-aksnes-synger-i-frozen-2-traileren
Youtube. 2021, Oct 6. “Aurora - Interview with the Queencore Podcast”. Zidreddin Zidron. Retrieved 2025, feb 12 from https://www.youtube.com/wa%20tchv=ppMyyvea0BA&list=PLtgoOJuVpwhs3be6S79IUgG4fnbWAH89Q&t=1099s
Youtube. 2024, Apr 30. “Xperience Sessions With Norwegian Singer-Songwriter, Aurora”. IndigoMusicdotcom. Retrieved 2025, feb 12 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KclDFY1K4xc&list=PLtgoOJuVpwhs3be6S79IUgG4fnbWAH89Q&t=89s
Krogh, A.H, 2019, Dec 17. "AURORA og Beyoncé danker ut Taylor Swift fra Oscar-racet". 730.no. Retrieved 2025, feb 11 from https://730.no/aurora-oscar-racet/
Tveit, J.M. 2020, Jan 13. "AURORA kan vinne Oscar! Her er årets nominasjoner. 730.no. Retrieved 2025, feb 11 from https://730.no/her-er-arets-oscar-nominasjoner-2/
NTB. 2020, Feb 8. "Aurora fra Os til Oscar: – En magisk tulleting". Bergensavisen. Retreved 2025, Jan 30 from https://www.ba.no/aurora-fra-os-til-oscar-en-magisk-tulleting/s/5-8-1229622
Talseth, T. 2020, Feb 11. " Aurora Aksnes’ søster Viktoria: – Aldri følt meg så skamløs". VG. Retrieved 2025, feb 11 from: https://www.vg.no/rampelys/i/K373qE/aurora-aksnes-soester-viktoria-aldri-foelt-meg-saa-skamloes
Krogh, A. H. 2020, Jul 05. " - Det er en ekstremsport å være menneske!". 730.no. Retrieved 2025, feb 11 from: https://730.no/730-no-x-aurora-aksnes/
NTB. 2020, Feb 8. "Aurora fra Os til Oscar: – En magisk tulleting". Bergensavisen. Retreved 2025, Jan 30 from https://www.ba.no/aurora-fra-os-til-oscar-en-magisk-tulleting/s/5-8-1229622
Alien Anthology. 2016, Dec 25. “Alien: Covenant |Teaser |Trailer”. Retrieved 2025, Feb 9 from https://youtu.be/H0VW6sg50Pk?si=Qo75aTwIQitd_fsw
Thank you for this, I hear new things with every episode!
Incredible research! Thanks for a great article!