Roxette
Roxette is a Swedish pop rock duo originally consisting of Marie Fredriksson and Per Gessle. Following Fredriksson's death in 2019, Roxette continued as a live act from 2024 onwards, with Lena Philipsson appearing as live vocalist. Fredriksson and Gessle were both established musicians in Sweden prior to the band's formation. Fredriksson released several successful solo albums, while Gessle was the lead singer and songwriter of Gyllene Tider, a band that had three number one albums in Sweden. On the advice of their mutual record label EMI, Fredriksson and Gessle collaborated for their debut single, "Neverending Love" (1986), a hit in Sweden.
The band achieved international success with their second album, Look Sharp! (1988). The album spawned two US Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles: "The Look" and "Listen to Your Heart". "It Must Have Been Love", from soundtrack to the film Pretty Woman (1990), also reached number one in the US. Their follow-up album, Joyride (1991), remains their bestseller, selling 11 million copies worldwide, and yielded the US number-one single "Joyride". The band performed for over 1.5 million people during the Join the Joyride! Tour. Subsequent albums included Tourism (1992), Crash! Boom! Bang! (1994), and the greatest hits compilation Don't Bore Us, Get to the Chorus! (1995), which each sold over 5 million copies worldwide.
Have a Nice Day (1999) and Room Service (2001) earned gold and platinum certifications in Europe and Latin America. Fredriksson was diagnosed with a brain tumour in 2002, leading to an extended hiatus. The two then released several solo albums, with Gessle also reuniting with Gyllene Tider. Roxette reformed in 2009 for an extensive world tour, which ran until 2016. During this period, they released the albums Charm School (2011), Travelling (2012), and Good Karma (2016). Fredriksson announced her retirement from touring in 2016 due to poor health and died on 9 December 2019 due to complications from cancer.
Roxette is Sweden's second-best-selling musical act, after ABBA. They have sold between 75 and 80 million records worldwide, and are recognised as one of the highest-certified acts of all time in Germany, achieving sales of almost six million units. They had nineteen top-40 hits in the United Kingdom, where the British Phonographic Industry awarded them certifications of over three million units. In the US, they achieved four number ones on the Billboard Hot 100, and have been certified for over three million units by the Recording Industry Association of America. In 2021, Gessle released music under the name PG Roxette; their debut album Pop-Up Dynamo! was issued in 2022. In 2024, he announced a Roxette tour, with Lena Philipsson hired as vocalist.
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