The singer, Aurora Aksnes, better known as just Aurora, performed a concert at the Royal Albert Hall on the 2nd of October 2024. She is a Norwegian singer/songwriter, known for her song Runaway released in 2015 and her performance as the mysterious voice in Frozen 2. At 10 years old, she started to write music, and in 2012, at 16, she released her first song, Puppet.
Aurora bewitched the audience with her heavenly singing. The crowd fell silent as Aksnes started to sing so her voice could be heard echoing through the hall. As she finished every track, the enthusiastic applause that followed lasted for minutes. Aurora’s playful comments at the end of each song had everyone laughing, such as her repeatedly comparing the Royal Albert Hall to a bowl of soup. During the performance, the singer displayed her talents with an accapella version of her song The River which felt haunting as the voices resonated around the hall. The organist Anna Lapwood accompanied the band during some of the songs, adding more texture to the music, the most memorable of which was Aurora’s song Seed in which the deep vibrations of the organ seemed to shake the building.
Hearing Aurora live elevates the impact and energy of her performance, we can hear clearly that it is all her voice making the gorgeous sound, she has no need for autotune. Currently she is on a world tour where she will perform in countries such as Norway, Australia and North America, but she will be returning to perform at Wembley next year. If you like artists such as Kate Bush and Bjork, you should listen to Aurora. Singer Billie Eilish has stated herself that she was inspired by Aurora to start making music. I highly encourage listening to her music as her voice is always enchanting.
Beatrice Macdonald-Hardman
