Little Dragon Biography
Biography
Little Dragon was founded in the Swedish city of Gothenburg by Yukimi Nagano (vocals, keyboards, percussion), Erik Bodin (drums, keyboards), Fredrik Wallin (keyboards, bass, percussion), and Hkan Wirenstrand (keyboards, drums). Yukimi Nagano’s coolly expressive vocals make the Swedish quintet Little Dragon instantly recognizable, and their music can be best described as primarily down-tempo electronic pop. In addition, they have organically merged a bizarre mashup of modern R&B, hip-hop, and underground dance music with nods to disco, new wave, and traditional vocal jazz.
Career & Projects
The band, who took its name from a nickname given to Nagano for her occasionally feisty studio demeanor, made their recorded debut in 2006 with the release of the single “Test,” which was distributed by the small Scandinavian label Off the Wall. The larger British independent Peacefrog was contacted as a result, and the following August, they published their self-titled debut album.
The opening track, the subdued piano ballad “Twice,” was included during the 2008–2009 season of Grey’s Anatomy, which helped its avant-garde jazz, R&B, and hip-hop flavorings find a cult fanbase. For their second album, Machine Dreams, which was released in August 2009, the quartet decided to shift course rather than stick with the same style and instead opted for frosty, hook-heavy electro-pop.
With Little Dragon (2007), which contains the eerie ballad “Twice,” the group made their full-length debut. Ritual Union (2011) started a run of Top Five dance/electronic albums for the group. Nabuma Rubberband (2014) reached the Top 15 of the U.K. chart and earned them a Grammy nomination for Best Dance/Electronic Album.
Since then, they have released albums like Season High (2017) and New Me, Same Us to add to their discography (2020). Through a clever and consistent series of featured performances on songs by artists including Gorillaz, SBTRKT, Kaytranada, and Flying Lotus, among others, they have steadily and successfully grown their fanbase throughout the course of their career.
