While Sweden continues to churn out sophisticated electro-pop starlets like Robyn, Agnes, Lykki Li, Janet Leon to name a few, Eastern Europe is fast becoming a hotbed of internationally compatible pop talent. Over the years we’ve seen pop stars emerge out of Russia (Alsou, t.A.T.u., Serebro) and Romania (Inna, Alexandra Stan), trying their hand at becoming international crossover success stories, each with their own varying degrees of success in both Europe and the United States. Next up – allow me to introduce you to Hungary’s own Szilvia Péter Szabó, known simply by her first name, Szilvia. While she remains relatively unknown outside of her native Hungary, this girl DEFINITELY has what it takes to make it on an international stage. Check out the video for her new song, “Never Again,” co-written by Szilvia, Joe Lawrence and Paul Britt.
Szilvia started out back in 2002 as part of popular Hungarian band NOX, releasing ten albums through Universal Music – Hungary. Of those ten albums, three are certified double platinum, two – platinum and four gold with six number 1’s to their name. That’s quite a career! In 2005, NOX entered the Eurovision Song Contest in Kiev with the song “Spin, World” (translated), earning the band a respectable 12th place finish and an audience in the millions. Following the the band’s split in 2009, Szilvia took a break and moved to Australia, where she modeled and continued to write music. Returning to Europe in 2011, Szilvia found herself in London, inspired and ready to resume her pop career.
Forging ahead as a solo artist, Szilvia has been hard at work on her new album, a fusion of both Hungarian and English pop tunes, destined to take us on an aural journey through the years since NOX. While this new album, entitled Revolution, does delve into her past, it’s also a look at the future, not to mention a thank you to her patient fans all over the world who have, no doubt, been eagerly awaiting her return to the scene. Revolution features production credits from Joe90, Sam Barter, and PJ Hawn and additional writing credits from English pop star Pierre Lewis and Paul Britt. Lewis, a pop star in his own right (“Broken,” “Going“) wrote 9 out of the album’s 14 tracks and also serves as her manager. In addition to expanding her fanbase all over the world, Szilvia‘s mission is quite simple. With her music, she intends to tell the story of her life and struggles up to this point, leaving her fans with one important message: “Never give up on your dreams” and “fight for what you believe in.“
Revolution will be out in Hungary via Universal Records tomorrow, May 28th. Pick it up in iTunes. In the meantime, check out her beautiful song “Never Again” below, shot in one of my favorite cities, London. Watch out for this girl.