Shy Martin Explained

shy martin
Birth Name:Sara Hjellström
Alias:shy martin
Birth Date:5 November 1993
Birth Place:Lerdala, Sweden
Origin:Lerdala, Sweden
Genre:Pop[1]
Occupation:singer, songwriter
Instrument:Vocals, guitar, piano
Years Active:2016–present
Label:shy recordings

Sara Hjellström (born 5 November 1993), known professionally as Shy Martin (stylized as shy martin) is a Swedish singer and songwriter. As a songwriter her compositions have been streamed over 3 billion times on Spotify alone, while her songs as lead vocalist have been streamed 1.5 billion times on the same platform.

In August 2020 shy released her Sad Songs EP, preceded by the singles "Slow" and "Are you happy?". The release was well received by blogs including The Line Of Best Fit,[2] Paste[3] and Idolator,[4] and has over 120 million+ combined streams on Spotify.

Career

Raised in the small town of Lerdala, Sweden, shy martin first began writing songs and poetry in her youth as a means of self-expression. After winning a music contest at her school at age 17, shy signed with EMI for a period though ultimately she decided to go independent. She decided to start studying at the songwriting school Musikmakarna in Örnsköldsvik, in the north of Sweden. Shortly after she moved to Stockholm and signed to the independent label BLNK Music. As of November 2020 she is no longer signed with BLNK.

shy martin first established herself as a songwriter, a path that launched in dynamic fashion via her co-write and featured vocal on Mike Perry's "The Ocean (ft. SHY Martin)." Recording the vocals in one-take in her home wardrobe, shy wrote the track with longtime Swedish songwriting partner, SHY Nodi, with whom she has written several other songs for artists including The Chainsmokers, NOTD, Jess Glynne, Astrid S, Timeflies, NEIKED and Kream. The track won Spotify Sweden's ‘Most Streamed Song of the Year’ with a groundbreaking 550 million+ streams (now 719 million+).

shy's career as an artist in her own right took off in 2017 with the release of ‘Good Together’, which was praised by The Line Of Best Fit as “part dancehall, part R&B, and completely addictive”.[5] Several more singles followed, receiving positive coverage from Billboard[6] and others, culminating in the Overthinking EP in 2018. In April 2020, Martin released the single "can I call you back?". James Keith of Complex UK called the song "a dream-like flurry of breathy vocals, soul-touching songwriting and twinkling electronics." This was followed by the Sad Songs EP, her most successful collection to date.

shy's songwriting catalog has gone on to generate over 3 billion streams on Spotify alone including credits on "First Time" by Kygo ft. Ellie Goulding, "(Not) The One" by Bebe Rexha, "All We Know" by The Chainsmokers, "I Wanna Know" by NOTD (ft. Bea Miller), as well as songs for Jess Glynne, Astrid S, and ALMA, among others.

In addition to her artistry, shy is also a member of numerous music industry initiatives, most notably joining Spotify CEO/Founder Daniel Ek and songwriter/producer Max Martin's coveted 'Equalizer Project', a group aiming to combat gender inequality in the music industry. shy also participated in Bebe Rexha’s 2018 'Women In Harmony' Dinner in Los Angeles, a gathering to empower female artists in music including Charli XCX, Kim Petras, and Avril Lavigne. She also performed alongside Matoma at the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize Concert.[7] [8] [9]

In 2018 shy was awarded the Stikkan Anderson award for Songwriting.

shy released her new single 'wish I didn't know you' in October 2022, receiving positive reception from press with Clash Magazine declaring shy ‘a genius...her voice has never been so beautiful’.[10] In February 2023 shy martin released the title track from her debut album 'late night thoughts', being described as ' a departure from her previous work and can be seen as her boldest, most openly emotional, brave, and beautiful release to date'.[11] martin is set to release her debut album in May 2023.[12]

Discography

Extended plays

AlbumDetailsTrack listing
Overthinking
  • Released: 7 December 2018
  • Label: BLNK Records
  • Formats: Digital download
Sad Songs[13]
  • Released: 7 August 2020
  • Label: BLNK
  • Formats: Digital download
  1. "Make Us Never Happen"
  2. "Slow"
  3. "Can I Call You Back?"
  4. "Nobody Likes Moving On"
  5. "Are You Happy?"

Singles

As lead artist

SingleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
SWE
[14]
"A Little Longer"
2017
"Good Together"79Overthinking
"Bad in Common"2018
"Forget to Forget"
"Lose You Too"
"Just a Little Longer"
"Out of My Hands"2019rowspan="2"
"Same Old"[15]
"Make Us Never Happen"Sad Songs
"Slow"[16] 2020
"Still the Same"
[17]
"Can I Call You Back?"[18] Sad Songs
"Nobody Likes Moving On"[19]
"Break with Me"[20] 2021rowspan="4"
"Remember You Were the One"[21]
"Feelings"[22]
"No Regrets"[23]
"wish I didn't know you"2022late night thoughts
"late night thoughts"2023

Notes

Writing credits

!Year!Title!Artist
2016The OceanMike Perry
2016Summer LoveFO&O
2016All We KnowThe Chainsmokers
2016You on repeatJeremy Folderol
2016Taped up heart KREAM feat. Clara Mae
2017BloodstreamAstrid S
2017First TimeKygo feat. Ellie Goulding
2017RaincoatTimeflies feat. SHY Martin
2017A little longerKIDDO feat. SHY Martin & Sid Rosco
2017(Not) The OneBebe Rexha
2017Sucker for youMatt Terry
2018Know this loveKREAM feat. Litens
2018UsJulie Bergan
2018Old Skool Love (feat. Nirob Islam)NEIKED
2018I wanna knowNOTD feat. Bea Miller
2018Good VibesAlma feat. Tove Styrke
2018Used ToSandro Cavazza & Lou Elliotte
2018Different WorldAlan Walker
2018Bad in commonSHY Martin
2019Trust IssuesAstrid S
2019Out of My HandsSHY Martin
2019Same OldSHY Martin
2020Ever Really KnowGeorgia Ku
2020First TimeDaya
2020Long Run (feat. Nina Nesbitt)Deacon
2023"Heroine"Ive

Awards and nominations

!Year!Award!Category!Received for!Result
2016Ted Gärdestad AwardsScholarshipSödra StationWinner
2016Denniz Pop AwardRookie Artist / BandSödra StationNominee
2017P3 GoldSong of the yearThe OceanNominee
2017P3 GoldPop of the yearSödra StationNominee
2017Swedish Grammy AwardsSong of the YearThe OceanNominee
2017Denniz Pop AwardGrand Prize (International success)    SHY Martin & SHY NodiWinner
2017Swedish Publishing AwardsBreakthrough of the YearSHY Martin & SHY NodiWinner
2017Swedish Publishing AwardsInternational Success of the YearSHY Martin & SHY NodiWinner
2017Swedish Publishing AwardsMost Streamed SongThe Ocean Winner
2018Swedish Publishing AwardsSong of the YearI Wanna KnowNominee
2019International Songwriting Competition[24] Pop top 40Forget to ForgetWinner

Notes and References

  1. Web site: TotalNtertainment . TotalNtertainment . SHY MARTIN ANNOUNCES DEBUT ALBUM . TotalNtertainment . 8 February 2023 . 15 February 2023.
  2. Web site: Swedish songwriting powerhouse SHY Martin opens up about her anxiety on "can I call you back?" . 2022-04-27 . The Line of Best Fit . en.
  3. Web site: 2020-08-07 . SHY Martin Has an Entire EP of 'Sad Songs' . 2022-04-27 . PAPER . en.
  4. Web site: 2020-08-08 . SHY Martin's 'Sad Songs' EP Lives Up To Its Title . 2022-04-27 . idolator.
  5. Web site: Astrid S and Bebe Rexhe writer shy martin steps into the spotlight with debut single "Good Together" . 2022-04-27 . The Line of Best Fit . en.
  6. Kress . Bryan . 2018-06-05 . SHY Martin Can't Help But 'Forget To Forget' in Latest Video: Exclusive . 2022-04-27 . Billboard . en-US.
  7. News: Förhandlingen mellan Mike Perry och Shy Martin gick framåt. 22 January 2019. Sveriges Radio. Swedish. 22 February 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190223074207/https://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=97&artikel=7137794. 23 February 2019. live. Öfwerström . Mats .
  8. Web site: Astrid S and Bebe Rexhe writer SHY Martin steps into the spotlight. Hannah, Andrew. 10 November 2017. The Line of Best Fit. 22 February 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190223074217/https://www.thelineofbestfit.com/new-music/discovery/shy-martin-good-together. 23 February 2019. live.
  9. SHY Martin Can't Help But 'Forget To Forget' in Latest Video. Kress, Bryan. 5 June 2018. Billboard. 22 February 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190223052221/https://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/pop/8459467/shy-martin-forget-to-forget-video. 23 February 2019. live.
  10. Web site: Murray . Robin . Track Of The Day 17/10 – Shy Martin . Clash . 17 October 2022 . Clash Magazine . 15 February 2023.
  11. Web site: Eat This Music . Steven . Delicious New Music for 9 February 2023 . Eat This Music . 9 February 2023 . 15 February 2023.
  12. Web site: Murray . Robin . shy martin Outlines Debut Album 'late night thoughts' . Clash . 8 February 2023 . Clash Magazine . 15 February 2023.
  13. Web site: Sad Songs - EP by SHY Martin on Apple Music. Apple Music. 16 May 2021.
  14. Web site: Discography Shy Martin. swedishcharts.com. 20 August 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20190223185151/https://swedishcharts.com/showinterpret.asp?interpret=Shy+Martin. 23 February 2019. live.
  15. Web site: Same Old by SHY Martin. Spotify. 25 March 2020.
  16. Web site: Slow by SHY Martin. Spotify. 25 March 2020.
  17. Web site: Still the Same (feat. Boy In Space) by SHY Martin, Boy In Space. Spotify. 25 March 2020.
  18. Web site: can I call you back? - Single by Shy Martin on Apple Music. Apple Music. 16 April 2020.
  19. Web site: Nobody Likes Moving On - Single by Shy Martin. Apple Music. 22 May 2020.
  20. Web site: Break With Me - Single by SHY Martin on Apple Music. Apple Music. 16 May 2021.
  21. Web site: Remember You Were the One - Single by SHY Martin on Apple Music. Apple Music. 16 May 2021.
  22. Web site: Feelings - Single by SHY Martin on Apple Music. Apple Music. 16 May 2021.
  23. Web site: No Regrets - Single by NEA & SHY Martin. 2021-08-12. Apple Music. en-US.
  24. Web site: International Songwriting Competition The #1 Song Contest for Songwriters. songwritingcompetition.com. 2019-05-23. https://web.archive.org/web/20190709082024/https://songwritingcompetition.com/winners. 9 July 2019. live.