Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsenlead singer of the band Naja P, will perform at the SPOT Festival, which is an annual music festival and cultural network conference in Aarhus.
Here she will perform with her band, which consists of guitarist Jaaku Sørensen, bassist Qillaq Petrussen, drummer Jens-Christian Lyberth-Lennert and keyboard player Laura Lennert Jensen.
Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsenlead singer of the band Naja P, will perform at the SPOT Festival, which is an annual music festival and cultural network conference in Aarhus.
Here she will perform with her band, which consists of guitarist Jaaku Sørensen, bassist Qillaq Petrussen, drummer Jens-Christian Lyberth-Lennert and keyboard player Laura Lennert Jensen.
Together they will perform on May 1 at 15:45 on the Garden Stage. However, the road there has been anything but smooth, as the band’s first application for participation was initially rejected.
– Our application was initially rejected, and I was so disappointed! But a few days later I got an invitation email from SPOT Festival, and my first thought was: “OMG, WHAT?!”, says lead singer Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen, and continues:
– At that moment, thoughts flew to the festival and to all the preparations. I got excited again, something inside me ignited, and suddenly there were many balls in the air.
Economic bump in the road
The band itself has to pay for the transport to Aarhus, and therefore the week since the invitation has been busy and hectic. Vahl Olsen sought support from, among others, NAPA and Eqqumiitsuliornermut Aningaasaateqarfik, but was refused.
– All the foundations we applied to replied that the application deadline had been exceeded. Then I felt hope disappear, even though the festival pulled me in. I felt so desperate, elaborates Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen.
Because of the refusals, she approached local companies, but the expenses of the trip were still not covered. Therefore, Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen shared a video on social media where she explained the situation and asked for support, and it finally paid off.
The cultural association in Aalborg, Tikiusaaq, agreed to support the band financially in exchange for them performing at the association. A similar agreement applies to Esme Lounge. They have agreed that the band will perform in the Esme Lounge and that the proceeds will go towards the band’s trip. The lead singer also credits Tupilak Travel and Niinas Psykologi as contributors to the cost of the tour.
– I sent about three hundred e-mails to various companies in the course of a week, and when it didn’t give the desired result, I instead turned my focus to social media, where we got the necessary funds for the trip. We are therefore very grateful to the individuals who have sent us money from their personal wallets, says the lead singer of Naja P.
Good expectations
In addition to the three hundred e-mails and the application deadline for the pool for the next publication at Vahl Olsen, her daughter’s first birthday also fell in the same week.
– I don’t know how I got it together. I sent e-mails, applied for funding for my next music release, and at the same time the preparations for Kaffemik, on the occasion of my daughter’s first birthday, were in full swing, says Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen.
What can spectators expect from your performance?
– You can expect to be swallowed into another world, where we welcome all emotions and the spirit of our ancestors and not least a tribute to our Inuit culture. At least that is what is written on the invitations we have sent to the music industry people around the world.
Vahl Olsen expects to meet bookers, agents and possibly a manager, although she is currently in dialogue with a potential manager.
– I cannot name any names, but I am in dialogue with my potential future manager, but I hope to meet more bookers and agents, says Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen expectantly and continues:
– We haven’t made a set list yet, but I know we’ll be performing some of my released songs as well as two unreleased English tracks I’ve written myself. The two English songs are planned for release in my next project, possibly in 2027.
Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen has not had an easy task planning the trip to Aarhus, as she has had to deal with other appointments at the same time. It is only now that it really dawns on her what the upcoming journey entails.
– We went to Arctic Sounds Music Festival already the day after we had bought the tickets, so I didn’t really manage to digest that we are also going to SPOT Festival. Only now is it really starting to sink in, and occasionally my heart tightens at the thought that it will be the first time I have to be away from my daughter, concludes Naja Parnuuna Vahl Olsen.
