World Exclusive First Listen: Loreen contemplates a new era on Is It Love

All Loreen cares about is love.

This was clear enough to see on her history-making banger Tattoo, which won the Eurovision Song Contest 2023, making Loreen the first woman (and only the second person ever, after Ireland's Johnny Logan) to win the competition twice. The first time, of course, was with the elegant electronic monster Euphoria, a song that almost singlehandedly changed the calibre of songs and artists that put themselves forward for Eurovision. 

Tattoo also saw tangible success on the UK's Official Singles Chart too, riding the crest of a wave to peak at Number 2, Loreen's highest-ever peaking single to date (Euphoria made it all the way to Number 3 in 2012). 

But the question every pop star should ask themselves after success such as this is not 'how do I top this?' but 'how do I turn this hype into a moment? How do I level up while still making music that is integral to who I am?'

Well, luckily for us, Loreen has always been entuned to herself and the world around her. Her brand new single, Is It Love, opens a brave new chapter in Loreen's career. She's levelling up, working with some of the most creative and successful producers in pop...and making music that sounds nothing like Euphoria or Tattoo. 

LISTEN to a snipper of Is It Love by Loreen below:

Is It Love belongs to the earth and the air. From the second that it opens, you hear the strumming of a guitar and the repeated hums of a flute.

'You'll find me in the echo of the dark,' Loreen starts, her voice strong and deep, like rocks. 'Working on the riddle of your heart. Lost here in the maze, now let me out. Is it love? Is it love? Is it love?'

As the production grows and swoons - paying tribute to Loreen's Moroccan heritage and, to be honest, giving Whenever Wherever by Shakira with extra angst  - Is It Love blossoms into a rollicking and almost blissful reclamation of love through pain. It's about not being sure about where you stand, and wanting to change the world around you because of it. 

'Tell me, what can your heart give mine now?' Loreen declares. 'Tell me, what do you feel in the night? Is it love?' 

Produced by Swedish super-producer Rami (Ariana Grande, Britney Spears) part of Max Martin's Wolf Cousins cohort and the duo MTHR (who were behind Zara Larsson's opulent banger Can't Tame Her), Is It Love sounds massive. Like it could envelop an entire valley. Despite being relatively short (clocking in at just under 2 minutes 30 seconds, get those TikTok syncs, sister!) Is It Love makes use of every second of its run time.

Whereas Euphoria and Tattoo explored the darker corners of electronica and trance, Is It Love is a bold move towards the sunlight. The fact that it doesn't sound anything like Loreen's biggest hits up to this point shouldn't be a cause for concern. 

Loreen has always been in control of her own destiny. All you can do is trust her and let her take you to the heart of it all. 

Is It Love by Loreen drops October 13 via Universal.