- I am like a horn of plenty that needs to be utilized, she says. – The fact that I grew up, practicing and writing means that I, today, don’t have to make an effort to produce new material. The challenge lies instead in where to focus my attention.
The fact that she has a dramatic and pretty incredible life story means she has lot to tell. Eighteen years old, she had a bicycle accident that resulted in a crushed leg, brain damage and amnesia. This greatly impacted Caroline’s life.
- I lost the ability to act from my intellect and had to learn to be a human being by trusting my intuition and emotions. This is when I realized I had to keep doing the music. In the time period when I didn’t know who I was, songs kept flowing through me, she says. She confesses these songs have yet to be released, but they will when she is ready.
After the accident, and after having lost her dearest girlfriend Stefanie in what is described as an unsolved missing case, she ended up at the Grove School of Music in Los Angeles, where she studied song writing and composition.
- This education was extremely useful. I needed structure to handle all the energy, she says. Four years later, she started her own record company with the fitting name Redhead Records, and her first release, Compassion, was dedicated her missing friend.
Today, Caroline is an establish artist in the USA. She has represented Norway on several occasions at international events such as royal visits and the international Olympic committee. She is still doing concerts “over there” but for the moment she has chosen to focus more on her home market.
- I want to make it happen here. I love Norway and feel that I have a lot to offer, she says. – It is very strange to get back to the Norwegian marketplace today, it is different than when I was younger. To get updated, I recently too a class in how the Norwegian record industry works, says Caroline, who does all of her own marketing.
- It is important to get well paid. One must have the right marketing and collaborators. I work strategically to build networks where I want to play.
Caroline defines her music as a cross between musical theatre, singer/ songwriter and jazz. In her opinion, the singer/ songwriter tradition is still going strong in Norway, and is perhaps more enduring than other genres.
- But, she says, the most important thing is that the music comes from an honest place and hits you in the heart. That way, the style of music becomes less important. – It is amazing to hear the songs that survive and are still being played today, like Summertime. It was originally written as a lullaby.