Ace Wilder On Her Wild Third Melodifestivalen Entry, Composing Pop For Asian Artists, Enjoying The Moment

Photo: Lizel Strömberg (ZEL photography)

Ace Wilder has been a stand-out fan-favourite to international Melodifestivalen viewers since her debut in the contest in 2014. With a bold, fresh style and unapologetic approach to her musical and visual artistry, there is never anyone for her to compete against that even remotely overlaps with her output. While "Busy Doin' Nothin'" was a playful parody of the disdain older generations have for what they perceive as a lack of work ethic or ambition from millennials, "Don't Worry" was a banging dance track that spoke to the many stresses of our day-to-day lives and the importance of not stressing oneself out about them. Both entries were choreographed by Litho Nericcio, who has once again returned for her latest competitive run.

Following the shocking low public voter-turnout for "Don't Worry" in the Melodifestivalen 2016 finals, many did not expect to see Ace Wilder return to the contest any time soon, if ever again. But Wilder shares that the song was the greatest incentive to do it once more.
AW: I wrote [Wild Child] in 2015 at the same time when I wrote "Don't Worry." "Don't Worry" made the cut and then we had this one just sort of laying around and we thought, 'we just did it so we might as well do it again' so I'm back!

This time around, Wilder has stripped back a bit on the larger scale seen in "Don't Worry" in favour of a pastel-coloured, floral number accentuated with some solid camera work and free-spirited choreography. Between last year's competitive run and this year's, Wilder released a very personal single entitled "Selfish" which even had a music video directed by her brother.
AW: I just got really inspired by being selfish. Can you say that?

Wilder assures us that she has been greatly inspired creatively over the last year and more follow-up material will come. A seasoned writer, Wilder got her start doing demo vocals as she was often told she sounded exactly like Kim Wild. This combined with a childhood nickname of 'Ace' was the genesis of her artist name. Her writing skills caught the attention of Korean producers, who latched onto a demo track she had co-written and led to her writing even more releases in the Asian music industries. Her pushes to establish herself as a solo artist led to a tremendous amount of pressure, particular in 2016 when SVT higher-ups were pushing for a woman to win (they're so successful at making their plans work, aren't they?) Wilder even had panic attacks due to the stress.
AW: Honestly, this is the first time I've felt no pressure. This time I just really want to enjoy myself.

Watch our full interview with Ace Wilder here: