Singer-songwriter and producer Aurora Aksnes, mononymously known as AURORA, is one of the world’s most mystical music artists. Born in Stavanger, Norway and currently residing in Os, Norway near Bergen– AURORA is someone who looks below the surface of what is considered “normal” by the world, and is considered by her fans to be an otherworldly force who was delivered to Earth’s ground by the spirits of another realm.

Currently 21-years-old, AURORA’s views on the world is much different than that of others. She views her fans as being “warriors” and “weirdos”, as she has a great passion for surrealism. Her fans were more than proud to call themselves this. She in return has been called by her fans: “The Queen of Queer”, as she is proud and free and represents the world of the bizarre and the freakish.

AURORA’s first studio album, All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend, debuted on March 11, 2016, by Decca Records. The album’s track listing consisted of twelve standard edition songs with an additional five deluxe edition songs. Her most popular song, Runaway, which is also the first song on her album, gained the most views on her official Vevo channel on YouTube– the current count being 31,902,847 views.

Makenzie Kramer, a junior at Oakdale High School, speaks very highly of AURORA’s music: “I see this difference to her. She’s weird, but in a whimsical way. She has a great feature in her style that stands out in the midst of other music artists in this generation– a contrast that I think everyone needs to hear. Her music amazes me all the time and I feel like I’m in a dream-like world whenever I listen to her.”

AURORA’s music has been used in multiple popular television shows such as The Flash, Teen Wolf, The 100, Wolfblood, and Netflix original film XOXO. Her song, “Under the Water”, was also featured in Simlish for the hit video game The Sims 4 in the “Vampires” expansion. She has also performed on a number of popular talk shows such as The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

“It’s great to see how much [AURORA] has grown as a person throughout the last couple of years,” Kramer continues. “I think it’s important for Americans to hear her voice, especially the teenagers of this generation. What better way to present that than through popular television shows like [The Tonight Show Starring] Jimmy Fallon and The Flash?”

Growing up as a teenager, AURORA had shown admiration for moths. This transcendental creature represents her best as she made herself look like one for her album cover for All My Demons Greeting Me as a Friend. She often visits surrealist museums, where she most feels at home. It is where she feels like she is the queen of all things strange and beautiful– where she can be the ruler of the eerie and eldritch.

“She’s like a fairy, almost,” Oakdale junior Isabella Menjivar states. “She has this magical dust that she sprinkles onto her fans and listeners. It leaves them with a great vibe that makes them feel powerful and unstoppable.”

Even in her music, AURORA sings about being a warrior and a conqueror. Her voice, which is extremely soothing, gives one the feeling that she has the soft wings of a moth and the bold spirit of a wolf. Living in the mountains of Norway, AURORA has realized what the meaning of life really is, due to being surrounded by peace and tranquil isolation– the perfect environment for her to contemplate. Her thoughts are not something that she can genuinely explain through conversation, but through her music, she does an incredible job conveying it.

“I’d suggest her to all people, definitely,” Menjivar says. “No matter what your taste in music is, AURORA gets through to your heart and mind. It’s not something that can be imagined or described. One actually has to listen to [AURORA] for themselves to get the full experience and feeling.”

AURORA continues to expand her audience through her meaningful music. It’s something that will only continue to grow as more people discover her. Within the last two years, she has performed on many famous stages in the D.C., including the 9:30 Club and U Street Music Hall. With more incredible opportunities to present the world with her mesmerizing voice, AURORA will certainly give listeners a new way of viewing the world and a new way to find mindfulness in meditation.