ionnalee is the latest artistic venture from Jonna Lee, a Swedish singer-songwriter, producer, and audiovisual artist who is no stranger to YouTube. Back in 2010, she and producer Claes Björklund launched their enigmatic online project iamamiwhoami: an audiovisual series combining transcendental Kate Bush-style vocals, dark but shimmering synth-pop melodies and uncanny videos. Shrouded in mystique, the videos merged images from Sweden’s folklore and natural landscape with a kind of dystopian, sci-fi aesthetic that wouldn’t look out of place in an Aphex Twin video.
After releasing three albums under iamamiwhoami, Lee went solo in 2017 and has since released another three as ionnalee. A decade since her creative work first appeared on our computer screens, it seems Lee has no intention of logging off. “As I can’t be where you are,” she says, introducing Konsert, “I welcome you to my island.” And gosh are we glad to be invited. Right now, when the world is stuck inside, kept apart and slowed down by a pandemic, we need the infectiously catchy music of ionnalee more than ever. Keeping us moving, bringing us together and reminding us of different, more enchanting futures.