A pop powerhouse maps the soundtrack of her life in Rolling Stone’s ‘My Life in 10 Songs.’
Pop princess Zara Larsson sits down with Rolling Stone for a new episode of My Life in 10 Songs, opening up about the tracks that shaped her childhood, her voice, her artistry, and her emotional DNA. It’s Zara in full storyteller mode — nostalgic, funny, and deeply tuned into how music wires itself into a person’s life.
Zara Larsson turns ten songs into a map of her pop-star DNA
From childhood obsessions to superstar influences, Zara’s song list feels like a backstage pass into the sounds that helped build her confidence, taste, and full-pop ambition.
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She begins with Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now,” the nightly post‑dinner performance anthem in her childhood home. As she recalls, “every day after dinner it would be like music time or like performance time,” a ritual powered by her dad’s love for Queen’s greatest hits. The song became a symbol of joy, confidence, and pure kinetic energy.
Then she dives into Beyoncé’s “Resentment,” the B‑Day deep cut she treated like vocal boot camp. Zara describes replaying it endlessly because of its emotion, difficulty, and Beyoncé’s unmatched delivery. “It was like going to practice for any sport,” she says — a formative challenge that sharpened her vocal instincts.
Her mischievous era arrives with Akon and Eminem’s “Smack Dat,” the forbidden track she and her friends secretly listened to on a classmate’s phone during recess. It was the first time music felt a little dangerous, a little grown, and totally irresistible — a core memory of early rebellion.
Teenage years? That’s Avicii’s “Levels.” Zara paints the picture perfectly: house parties, crushes, and the sense that Avicii’s melodies were stitched into every moment of growing up in Sweden. “ACI is really the soundtrack to my teenage years,” she says, noting how his melodic language shaped an entire generation.
She shifts into pure vocal worship with Whitney Houston’s “Greatest Love of All,” the song she performed on Sweden’s Got Talent at age 10 — a moment she says “changed my life dramatically.” Watching old footage of herself singing lyrics she barely understood, she laughs at her tiny voice and big ambition.
Her rock‑girl era arrives with Green Day’s “Basket Case,” a track she associates with feeling cool, rebellious, and ready to take on the world. She even credits Green Day’s live show for inspiring the now‑iconic “Lush Life” dance, after watching them bring fans onstage and wanting to recreate that connection with her own audience.
She then dips into Swedish melancholy with Yung Lean’s “Leanworld,” a song that evokes winter in Stockholm, the Sad Boys movement, and the emotional texture of growing up in a country where darkness lasts for months. It’s introspective, atmospheric, and deeply tied to her sense of home.
London summers come alive with J Hus’ “Did You See,” which she calls “peak London summer” — sunshine, friends, and a track that followed her everywhere. She compares its cultural moment to Drake’s “One Dance,” a song that defined an entire season of her life.
Then comes the emotional gut‑punch: Christina Aguilera’s “Hurt.” Zara remembers listening to it with her mom, both of them crying, both moved by the storytelling and vocal power. She calls it one of her karaoke go‑tos and credits it with shaping her love for ballads and vocal‑forward pop.
Finally, she closes with Carola’s “Säg mig var du står,” the rare Swedish‑language song that hit her as hard as the global divas she adored. Carola, she says, is “the voice of Sweden,” and performing the song with her years later felt like a full‑circle moment — the kind that makes you feel like a real artist.
The episode is pure Zara: candid, emotional, funny, and full of the kind of musical memory‑mapping that makes fans feel like they’re sitting right beside her.
Press play on the Rolling Stone episode and take the trip with her.
