The winner of the Government’s Music Export Prize was announced today during a ceremony in the Blue Drawing Room at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. The prize is awarded each year to Swedish music creators who have contributed to export success and to spreading a modern and positive image of Sweden abroad.

“For 50 years, ABBA have symbolised globally successful Swedish music, and they have played a huge part in establishing Sweden internationally. Being able to return to the stage after 40 years is an extraordinary and immense feat,” says Anna Hallberg, Minister for Foreign Trade and Nordic Affairs.

The jury’s citation:
It is not every day that the BBC reschedules a news broadcast to premiere a new pop song. But that is exactly what happened when ABBA released new songs for the first time in 40 years. Suddenly, some of history’s greatest pop artists were back. ABBA’s album Voyage was not only one of the greatest, most surprising and acclaimed comebacks in pop history, it also broke new records. The LP reached number 1 in 18 countries, the quartet topped the album chart in the United States, and it was the best-selling album in Germany. They were most successful in the UK. Only the Beatles and six other artists have reached number 1 more than the 10 times that ABBA reached in autumn 2021. Voyage became the fastest-selling album ever in the 21st century in the UK. In just three days, the group’s upcoming, much-discussed and spectacular avatar-based show in London sold a quarter of a million tickets. The show will premiere in spring 2022. It has been 50 years since ABBA was founded, and they have sold over 400 million records. What Agnetha, Björn, Benny and Anni-Frid started in 1972 became a massive first step in the success of Swedish music worldwide. Thank you for the music!

Read more here.