Runaway
"When I was 17, I remember being quite scared because it seemed so far away and I thought, 'will my family die?'"
7th of February 2015
Almost a whole year passed from the release of "Awakening" to the release of this one, even though we know this one was performed at By:Larm 2014 and at concerts before and after that one.
The year of 2014 was a busy year for Aurora, with performances and interviews in Norway, added with shows in Germany, UK and several states in USA (^8.1). A really big event this year was the Øya Festival 2014, a performance that harvested blessings and praise in the reviews. An example is "... Goosebumps, chills down my spine and a couple of tears in my eyes... Assessment: 9/10" - (^8.2).
Aurora wrote "Runaway" at her home, sitting by the piano a quiet day. She said in an interview that the song came to her in an epiphany. The weather outside was grey and the time stood still (^8.3)
"For me now, that song is about my actual home where my parents are," the Norwegian singer added. "When I was 17, I remember being quite scared [when she was away and touring] because it seemed so far away and I thought, 'will my family die?'" (^8.4).
Two weeks after it's release, 25th of February, the music video for "Runaway" was published. The filming was done outside, and Aurora got sick from the cold afterwards (^8.4). But it was well worth it; Katy Perry herself proclaimed herself as a fan of Aurora after watching it: "Finally, some music that makes my heart flutter, check out this 17 year old angel.", she wrote on Twitter (^8.5)
There's more: Before the year ends for Aurora, she gets invited to play at the Nobel Peace Price Concert, the 11th of December 2015, along with KYGO and A-ha (^8.6). From this point there is no doubt whether Aurora is climbing fast to shine among the stars. By this time she had only released the EP "Running with the wolves" which I will cover soon.
I have included a clip from the demo version (^8.7)and the Peace Prize Concert 2015 (^8.8) above. Notice how the mood and sound has changed over the course of 1.5 years of working with its production.
Sources
8.1 - Bandsintown - Concert lists
https://www.bandsintown.com/a/25117?came_from=206
8.2 - Ny Musikkhverdag
http://nymusikkhverdag.net/oya2014-aurora-aksnes
8.3 - Runaway song story on NME
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.nme.com/news/music/aurora-runaway-lyrics-meaning-video-billie-eilish-2482989%3famp
8.4 - Song facts
https://www.songfacts.com/facts/aurora/runaway
8.5 - Katy Perry tweet (VG.no)
https://www.vg.no/rampelys/i/0mjBB/katy-perry-skryter-av-norsk-stjerneskudd-paa-twitter
8.6 - Aurora to the Peace Prize concert
https://www.ba.no/nyheter/a-ha-og-aurora-aksnes-til-nobels-fredspriskonsert/s/5-8-183129
8.7 - Runaway, demo version
AURORA - Runaway (Demo version)
8.8 - Runaway, Peace Prize Concert 2015
AURORA - RUNAWAY - The 2015 Nobel Peace Prize Concert