Robyn's parents are actors, and she herself was involved in acting at the age of 9, with an extra role in Kronbruden at the Swedish theatre Dramaten. In 1991, at the age of 12, Robyn recorded the theme song named "Du kan alltid bli nummer ett" ("You can always be number one") for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln. In the same year she performed this song on television show Söndagsöppet. Robyn was rediscovered by Swedish pop singer Meja in the early 90s. Meja and her band Legacy of Sound visited Robyn's school and were involved with a musical workshop.
Following the completion of her middle school education, Robyn signed to Ricochet Records Sweden, a subsidiary of BMG. She collaborated with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop. Writing duties were assisted by Ulf Lindstrom and Johan Ekhe, who also helped to produce the album, and they stayed on board with Robyn until 2003.
Robyn started her career in the pop music industry at the age of 16. She signed a record deal with RCA Records in 1994 to release her debut single "You've Got That Somethin'" in Sweden, followed by her breakthrough single "Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect)". In October 1996 she released her debut album Robyn Is Here. Robyn's US breakthrough came in 1997, when the dance-pop singles "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know (What It Takes)" reached the top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Her second album My Truth was released in May 1999 in Sweden, with subsequent releases elsewhere in Europe. The single "Electric" was a hit across Europe, and propelled My Truth to second position in Sweden. Despite her success in the US market with her debut album, My Truth did not receive an international release.
In 1999, Robyn contributed to Christian Falk's debut solo album Quel Bordel, appearing on the tracks "Remember" and "Celebration". In 2000, she appeared on the track "Intro/Fristil" on Petter's self-titled album. In 2001, Robyn contributed the song "Say You'll Walk the Distance" to the soundtrack for the film On the Line.
In November 2002, Robyn swapped labels at BMG (from RCA to Jive Records) and released her third album Don't Stop The Music in Sweden. She issued the singles "Keep This Fire Burning" and "Don't Stop The Music" in Scandinavia and mainland Europe. The lead single "Keep This Fire Burning" was covered by British soul singer Beverley Knight.
The decade-long relationship between Robyn and BMG ceased in 2004. When they reacted negatively to "Who's That Girl", which showcased a new electropop sound, Robyn decided to release music on her own. In early 2005, she announced she would be leaving Jive Records to start her own record label, Konichiwa Records. In May 2004, Robyn's Best was released in America. It is essentially a condensed version of her debut album, containing no material from her later releases. In 2006, following her departure from BMG, the compilation Det Bästa Med Robyn (The Best of Robyn) was released in Sweden.
Robyn released the single "Be Mine!" in March 2005, followed a month later by her fourth studio album Robyn. This album became her first number one album upon its release in Sweden. Collaborators of this album include names like Klas Åhlund from Teddybears, the Swedish duo The Knife and former Cheiron producer Alexander Kronlund. Sampling influences from electronic, rap and R&B music, Robyn received rave reviews, and gained the singer three Swedish Grammy Awards in 2006 for "Årets Album" (Best Album), "Årets Kompositör" (Best Writer, alongside Klas Åhlund) and "Årets Pop Kvinnlig" (Best Pop Female). Robyn released three more singles from the eponymous album: "Who's That Girl", "Handle Me" and "Crash and Burn Girl".
In 2006 she featured on the Basement Jaxx track "Hey You", taken from their album Crazy Itch Radio. The year also marked the release of Christian Falk's second album People Say, on which Robyn contributed the tracks "Dream On" and "C.C.C.". In December 2006, she released The Rakamonie EP in the UK.
In March 2007, Robyn released the single "Konichiwa Bitches" in the UK, followed by the revised edition of the album Robyn in April 2007. This version contains slightly altered versions of two of the original songs and two new tracks: "With Every Heartbeat" (a collaboration with Kleerup) and "Cobrastyle" (a cover of a 2006 single by Swedish rockers Teddybears). The second single from this revised album was "With Every Heartbeat", issued in late July 2007 and reaching number one on the UK singles chart. Follow-up singles "Handle Me", "Be Mine!", "Who's That Girl" and "Dream On" were top thirty hits. Also in 2007, Robyn contributed vocals to Fleshquartet's single "This One's For You", from their album Voices of Eden.
The Rakamonie EP was released in January 2008 in the US under Cherrytree Records, a subsidiary of Interscope, and the US edition of her self-titled album was released in April 2008. "With Every Heartbeat (with Kleerup)", "Handle Me" and "Cobrastyle" were top ten club hits, and the former received airplay at US pop and dance radio stations. She was also featured on "Sexual Eruption (Fyre Department remix)" by Snoop Dogg.
Robyn completed a short US tour to promote the album Robyn, and was the supporting act for Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour at select European dates in 2008. In January 2009, Robyn won a Swedish Grammis Award for Best Live Act 2008. In 2009 she featured on the single "The Girl and the Robot" from the album Junior by Norwegian electronic band Röyksopp.
In 2010 Robyn announced she planned to release three albums in the same year. To promote the first part, she released the songs "Fembot", "Dancehall Queen" (produced by Diplo) and "None of Dem" (featuring Röyksopp) to digital outlets as promotional singles on 13 April 2010. Klas Åhlund was the main producer of all Body Talk albums.
Robyn released Body Talk Pt. 1, on 14 June 2010 in the Nordic countries through EMI and on 15 June 2010 in the US through Interscope. This mini-album was preceded on 1 June 2010 by the lead single "Dancing On My Own". The song became Robyn's first number one hit in Sweden, and her fourth top ten hit in both the UK and the US, peaking at #8 on the UK Singles Chart and at #3 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Songs chart. Later The Guardian and Slant Magazine rated "Dancing On My Own" as the best song of 2010, and Pitchfork Media ranked it 4th in their Top 100 Tracks of 2010. On 30 August 2010, Robyn performed at Polar Music Prize 2010 a cover of "Hyperballad", with Björk being in the audience.
On 6 September 2010, Body Talk Pt. 2 was released in the UK. It was preceded on 5 September 2010 by the single "Hang With Me", a dance version of an acoustic song from Body Talk Pt. 1. This album also contains a duet with Snoop Dogg on "You Should Know Better (feat. Snoop Dogg)". On 12 September 2010 Robyn performed a remixed version of "Dancing On My Own" with deadmau5 at MTV Video Music Awards 2010.
Robyn released on 22 November 2010 (US and Scandinavia) the third and final part of the Body Talk series, entitled Body Talk. The album includes five songs from each previous Body Talk parts, along with five new songs. The new tracks have been made available separately as Body Talk Pt. 3 in the United States and Germany. The album was promoted mainly by the release of the single "Indestructible" on 1 November 2010. Body Talk received extremely favorable reviews from most music critics and featured on many year-end lists.
On 1st April 2011, Robyn issued the single "Call Your Girlfriend".
Official site: http://www.robyn.com
Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall
Robyn Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I shut the world outside until the lights come on
Maybe the streets alight, maybe the trees are gone
But I feel my heart start beating to my favourite song
And all the kids they dance, all the kids all night
Until Monday morning feels another life
I turn the music up
And heaven is in sight
I turn the music up, I got my records on
From underneath the rubble sing a rebel song
Don't want to see another generation drop
I'd rather be a comma than a full stop
Maybe I'm in the black, maybe I'm on my knees
Maybe I'm in the gap between the two trapezes
But my heart is beating and my pulses start
Cathedrals in my heart
And we saw oh this light
I swear you, emerge blinking into
To tell me it's alright
As we soar walls, every siren is a symphony
And every tear's a waterfall
Is a waterfall
Is a waterfall
Oh oh oh
Is a is a waterfall
Every tear
Is a waterfall
Oh oh oh
So you can hurt, hurt me bad
But still I'll raise the flag
Oh
It was a wa wa wa wa wa-aterfall
A wa wa wa wa wa-aterfall
Hey
Hey hey
It was a wa wa wa wa wa-aterfall
A wa wa wa wa wa-aterfall
Hey
Every tear
Every teardrop is a waterfall
Every tear
Every tear
Every teardrop is a waterfall
Every tear
Every tear
Every teardrop is a waterfall
In the first verse of Robyn's "Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall" song, the lyrics depict a scenario where the music is loud enough to shut out the world outside. The streets could be dark, and the trees might have gone, but the favourite song beats on her heart. The children dance through the night, hoping to escape the mundane Mondays. The chorus bursts with energy and hope as the singer realises she is in heaven when she turns the music up.
In the second verse, Robyn declares that she's singing a rebel song from beneath the rubble. She doesn't want to see another generation of young people suffer at the hands of a violent system. She would rather be a comma than a full stop, signifying that she wants to make progress in the journey of change, even if minimal. Robyn confesses she could be in a dark place, but she's determined to stay strong amidst the struggles. The cathedrals in her heart keep her resolute.
Line by Line Meaning
I turn the music up, I got my records on
I raise the volume of music and listen to my favorite hits
I shut the world outside until the lights come on
I separate myself from the rest of the world and immerse myself into the music
Maybe the streets alight, maybe the trees are gone
It does not matter whether the world outside is lively or barren, as I focus myself on the music
But I feel my heart start beating to my favourite song
The rhythm of the music has me feeling alive and inspired
And all the kids they dance, all the kids all night
Everyone is having fun dancing to the music throughout the night
Until Monday morning feels another life
The weekend is so enjoyable that it feels like an entirely separate life from work/school week
I'm on a roll this time
I feel like I'm doing everything right and am unstoppable
And heaven is in sight
I'm so happy and carefree that it feels like I'm in paradise
From underneath the rubble sing a rebel song
Even in the most difficult of situations, I sing songs of defiance and perseverance
Don't want to see another generation drop
I don't want to witness any more generations suffer because of our mistakes
I'd rather be a comma than a full stop
I'd rather continue living and trying than giving up and being forgotten
Maybe I'm in the black, maybe I'm on my knees
I might be in a dark place emotionally or physically struggling, but I keep going
Maybe I'm in the gap between the two trapezes
I might be in a period of transition between two significant moments in my life
But my heart is beating and my pulses start
Even though life may be tough, my heart keeps going and I remain passionate
Cathedrals in my heart
I have deep feelings of love, reverence, and appreciation within me
And we saw oh this light
In moments of darkness, we caught sight of hope and inspiration
I swear you, emerge blinking into
I promise you, that hope and inspiration will find you and bring you out of darkness
To tell me it's alright
To assure me that everything will be okay
As we soar walls, every siren is a symphony
We overcome obstacles, and even negative experiences become beautiful parts of our journey
And every tear's a waterfall
Even though crying may be seen as a weakness, every tear represents a powerful expression of emotion and release
So you can hurt, hurt me bad
Even if you try to hurt me deeply, I won't let it stop me or discourage me
But still I'll raise the flag
I will persist and continue standing up for what I believe in
Every tear
Every expression of sadness or emotion
Every teardrop is a waterfall
Every tear is representative of the strength and passion that exist within us
Contributed by Caroline W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Lea Marie
I like her version better then Coldplay's original, to be perfectly honest with you
Rodrigo Ferraz
+That Girl Me too.. I'm in love with this version! -
ROWKEM
Never get tired of hearing her sing. :)
Nolan Cadena
This song was MADE for her! <3
Louise Lind
Everything Robyn touches becomes her own & it is always beautiful. Love her so much
EumelNebeler
I Love Robyn and I like Coldplay! Every Teardrop is a waterfall is for me the Best Song from Coldplay, but the Version from Robyn is more Electric! I like the Beat more in the Robyn Version than in the original!!!
L Hummel
Hands down an awesome cover!
Paula Sorrentino
amazing job! congrats for you, coldplay knows what a great singer you are :D
Nick Post
I love Coldplay and I love Robyn, they should do this song together <3
melissaortega
omg what an amazing voice!!!! i'm hook!!! besides that i already love the song, but she's amazing!!