They have been the soundtrack of the early Nineteen Nineties.
Swedish pop group Ace of Base took the world by storm with smash hits like “The Sign,” “All That She Wants” and “Don’t Turn Around.”
But simply as rapidly as they rose to fame, the group — consisting of siblings Jenny Berggren, Linn Berggren, Jonas Berggren and childhood pal Ulf Ekberg — all however disappeared from the highlight.
They haven’t carried out collectively for the reason that World Music Awards in May 1996.
But now two band members are breaking their silence in a brand new three-part docuseries, “Ace of Base: All The She Wants,” which premiered this week on Viaplay.
“What I needed with the documentary is I needed to inform the hardships, however I additionally needed to inform find out how to get complete once more,” Jenny advised NBC News NOW’s Top Story in an unique interview.
“It’s a narrative that really we made it actually towards all odds,” Ekberg stated. “When no person believed in us.”
Despite three Grammy nominations in 1995 and thrice topping the Billboard Top 40 chart, Jenny stated Ace of Base was by no means about changing into well-known.
“Me, my sister, my brother, are regular folks,” she stated. “We didn’t go for fame. We didn’t go for that cash.”
As for why they went their separate methods, she defined, “When you’re sporting a crown that was large as a citadel it may be a bit tiring on the neck ultimately.”
“I feel the true story about Ace of Base has by no means actually been advised,” Ekberg advised NBC News. “There’s by no means been a correct documentary made about us … and the story behind it, and the ups and the downs.”
The docuseries, which was directed by Jens von Reis, options never-before-seen dwelling video footage from earlier than Ace of Base was a family identify to the following chaos that erupted once they turned international superstars.
“I did have, like, 200 hours of movie materials from the early ’90s till current days, which I really by no means watched,” Ekberg recalled. “But [Reis] watched all of the 200 hours, and stated, ‘We have a gold mine right here.’”
Jenny hopes the docuseries will shock longtime followers and even youthful viewers who could not have heard of the band. Despite being a pop act, she stated, “We had a message that there was a lot darkness on the earth, folks have been depressed, and we simply knew that folks needed to have enjoyable.”
A key interviewee within the collection is music govt Clive Davis, who performed a pivotal position within the band’s American success.
“Without [Clive] I’m fairly satisfied we might by no means have reached primary within the U.S. So he positively meant lots for us,” Ekberg stated.
Although Jonas Berggren was not interviewed for the collection, he does seem briefly on the finish. Lin, nonetheless, is the one member who doesn’t make an look. She has intentionally remained out of the highlight for greater than twenty years.
“She’s residing. She’s main her life,” Jenny stated of her sister. “And she says, ‘I wish to be out of the attention. I wish to be out of the strain.’”
Despite having not taken the stage collectively in a long time, the group has skilled success on streaming platforms, with greater than 11 million month-to-month listeners on Spotify.
But does any of it imply a reunion might ever be attainable?
“We are doing various things. Everybody is on their very own monitor. Everybody’s over 50, and, as I say, the time they knock on my door, I acquired all of it ready,” stated Jenny, who’s had a profitable solo music profession, together with a brand new single launched this week, titled “Lion’s Den.”
Ekberg needs a reunion and expressed hope that this docuseries might make the unattainable a actuality.
“I’ve been attempting to push to make a reunion for the previous 10 years,” he stated. “But it has to work as nicely and we have now to have the ability to do a fantastic efficiency for the followers that we will be happy with.”