“KEiiNO has become colorful in another part of the world: – A dream come true”

By Line Alette Bjørnback Varsi  and Christian Ziegler Remme–

NRK Sápmi, Wednesday April 15^th 2026
Translated by Linda Brandt, KEiiNO NEWS

“Seven years after the music group was formed, KEiiNO is now experiencing strong interest in the Chinese market. They are now working hard to break fully into the Asian market.”

“When a tailwind suddenly began blowing from the northeast, it felt like a dream come true,” says KEiiNO vocalist Alexandra Rotan.

“The fact that a single song has suddenly gained attention in another part of the world, is completely surreal, almost unbelievable. It feels like a dream that has become reality, and we are ready to give our all to take on the Chinese market,” says Rotan.

She believes it is the group’s unique sound that has led to their success.

“We mix joik, we have Nordic tones, and we include electronic elements that create a positive feeling. I believe that’s what makes people in China like our music,” says Alexandra Rotan.

Fred Buljo is also very happy that they have so many new listeners.

He thinks it is especially great that Sámi cultural heritage is reaching so far.

“I think it’s wonderful that joik is being heard in China and that Chinese people enjoy joik,” says Fred.

“He says that their philosophy is that joik is for everyone.”

KEiiNO has recently been included on Impala’s “100 Artists to Watch” list.

The music group has released three albums: OKTA (2020), OKTA guokte (2022), and Chromium Heart (2025).

The group is currently on the “Chromium Heart” tour.

In just the past year, KEiiNO has experienced a 50% increase in monthly listeners outside of Norway.

China appears to account for a large share of this growth, according to figures from Warner Music Group, and the song most streamed in China is “Unbreakable.”

Different concert culture

Although KEiiNO is used to applause and audiences who dance, Chinese concert culture surprised Tom Hugo Hermansen greatly.

“What really surprised us was how people behaved at the concert,” Hermansen explains.

He points out that Chinese public culture is much more formal than Norwegian public culture.

“At public concerts, you are expected to sit in your seat. When we encouraged people to stand up and clap, they didn’t initially know what to do,” Hermansen recalls.

Hermansen adds that the audience gradually warmed up, and he is very happy to have seen how engaged they became.

The trip to China has been important for vocalist Alexandra Rotan, and she describes the experience as joyful.

“Traveling around the world to hold concerts, and seeing that people had already heard our songs, and then finally getting to see us, was incredibly special,” Rotan says.

Putting everything into the China effort

To secure a strong position in the Chinese market, they have started learning the language so they can possibly gain even more fans.

“We usually practice Chinese when we fly to China. And we see that when we speak Chinese, we get even more engagement on social media in China,” says Fred Buljo.

The success has lifted their spirits even more, and Fred Buljo says the group is already planning a new trip to the East.

Tom Hugo Hermansen agrees that such a large population requires their presence.

“There are 1.4 billion people, so when we’ve suddenly received so much interest, we simply have to seize the opportunity and hope to establish a strong position there,” says Hermansen.

He also doesn’t hide that China is now the group’s main focus area.

“We’re putting all our effort into it. It doesn’t take a very large percentage before this can become really big,” Hermansen says.