Five thirty-something fathers from the northern Swedish town of Skellefteå become internet sensations thanks to their a cappella covers of major pop hits. “Typically Swedish” singing fathers filming themselves at home looking after their children.
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The group “Dad Harmony”, which is currently touring the country for the first time, has tens of millions of views on social networks.
“It all started on the day of my bachelor party, in the summer of 2022,” explains Peter Widmark, a 33-year-old salesman, in an interview with AFP. “We sang, as we often do, and my brother posted the video on TikTok, where he has seven followers.”
When they woke up the next morning, the five singers discovered that the post had been viewed 40,000 times! A number that will rise to 20 million worldwide in just a few weeks.
AFP
The “quintet” then came into play and decided to regularly post videos from the kitchen or on the sofa, often with their toddlers on their knees. To a unison cover of the song “Hallelujah” by Leonard Cohen, one of them holds his week-old baby in his arms.
“Calming effect”
“It has a calming effect on them when we sing,” says Peter. “We are typical Swedish fathers,” notes his brother Tomas, another member of the group. “It’s nothing special for us to have the children with us. Almost all men here take paternity leave, so we’re used to it.”
“Dad Harmony’s” repertoire ranges from Michael Jackson to the Beatles, including Christmas songs.
Since the end of November, the group has been traveling around Sweden every weekend for a month to meet their audience. The five fathers continue to work during the week and are with their families. They each have two children.
“I came across one of their videos and I was completely fascinated by it, that’s probably because of their nature,” enthuses Louise Elgström, 41, a Nörrköping resident who wanted to visit the group that stopped in her town.
Will success cause them to lose their sense of reality? “You won’t see us throwing televisions out of the hotel window,” promises Sebastian Åkesson, one of the singers.
Without delusions of grandeur, the members of “Dad Harmony” are not afraid to see the future on a grand scale.
Therefore, they are considering dates in the United States and Asia. And dream of one day performing for another young father… Elton John.