ABBA's Agnetha Is 74 Years Old & Looks Gorgeous Today

Jun 11, 2021

The band ABBA was a famous Swedish pop group that first formed in 1972 in Stockholm, Sweden. The group achieved international success and topped the charts from 1974 to 1983 around the world. One member of the group, Agnetha Faltskog, is a singer, songwriter, and actress that actually began her singing career back in 1968. Faltskog reached stardom in her home country of Sweden before joining the band.

ABBA has sold 380 million albums and singles worldwide, which makes them one of the top-selling artists in history. Faltskog’s solo work hasn’t reached nearly as much exposure but has still been successful. She had released five albums of her own since ABBA and surprised the public when she returned in 2013 with her album “A,” which became her highest UK charting album to date.  

Faltskog has lived a quiet life and stayed out of the public eye for many years. During the 1990s, she did not release any music and continued to prioritize her privacy. It was 16 years before she released another album. That album was titled “My Colouring Book” in 2004, and it is only one of five of Faltskog’s records released in English. 

Even though she just turned 74, Faltskog looks fantastic for her age. It is tempting to say she has retired again, but she has surprised her fans in the past by returning unexpectedly, so one never knows. There may be more songs left for Faltskog to write. Read on to learn more about her personal life and to see how wonderful the singer looks today. 

Faltskog was born in Jönköping, Sweden, on April 5, 1950. She is the oldest of two daughters, and her parents were Knut Ingvar Faltskog and Birgit Margareta Johansson. Her father showed an interest in music and show business when she was young, while her mother focused on the household and family. 

Faltskog showed interest in music early on and was only 6 when she wrote her first song, titled “Two Little Trolls.” She also sang in her local church choir while growing up and began taking piano lessons when she was 8 years old. In early 1960, when Faltskog was 10, she formed a musical trio called the Cambers with her friends Lena Johansson and Elisabeth Strub. 

The band did not last very long but had the chance to perform at some minor venues. The singer left school when she was 15 years old to pursue a career in music. When she was 16, Faltskog started singing in a dance band called Bernt Enghardts. According to her biography on ABBA’s official website, her first single was a song she wrote for the band, which was titled “I Was So In Love.”

Career Beginnings

While starting out with the band, Bernt Enghardts, Faltskog also worked as a telephonist for a car firm. Soon, the dance band began to gain popularity, and she had to leave the job behind. 

Faltskog was a member of the band for two years, but things became complicated when a music producer, Karl Gerhard Lundkvist from Cupola Records, showed interest in only her while listening to the band’s demo recording. He heard her song, “I Was So In Love,” and wanted to sign her to the label.  

Faltskog decided to sign a deal with Capitol Records and released her debut single in 1967. The song had sold more than 80,000 copies and reached the top of the Swedish charts by January 1968. Faltskog quickly developed a career as one of Sweden’s most popular pop music artists. 

In 1969, she participated in a television special about Swedish composer Jules Sylvain. The same year, she released her second single “Gypsy Friend,” which was about a young girl attending a wedding and falling in love with the bride’s brother. That was also the year she met her future husband and ABBA member, Bjorn Ulvaeus. 

ABBA

Ulvaeus and Faltskog began dating and later married in 1971. Their relationship and mutual friendship with Anni-Frid Lyngstad and Benny Andersson led to the formation of ABBA. In 1974, the group’s song “Waterloo” was chosen for and won the Eurovision Song Contest. Eurovision is an international song competition that premiers annually in Europe. In some countries, Faltskog went by the name Anna at times while the group was touring.  

The members of the pop band all seemed to get along well and were genuine friends. Faltskog said in an interview on the Skavlan television show that no one person acted as a leader. “We were all bosses. We were all very strong people. Strong-willed people. I think that is why things turned out so great,” she explained.

Faltskog continued, “We had such a nice time because we were all so talented. We could, all of us, contribute with our own specific thing. I had a lot of ideas for the chorus and details that would liven up the song. A little gimmick in every song, that was my contribution.” It is pure magic that these four musicians were able to balance each other out and mix their talents together so nicely.

During the time that ABBA was active, Faltskog and Ulvaeus started a family together. This meant there were times when practice and other engagements were delayed due to her pregnancies. In 1979, Ulvaeus and Faltskog divorced; however they worked hard not to let their separation affect the band.

Being a mother and a pop star at the same time was challenging, but Faltskog has said she wouldn’t have it any other way. “People have said: ‘Why didn’t you write more ABBA songs?’ There were phases when I was so relieved to be back at home. We travelled so much, and I had two small children at home. When I got home I felt, ‘I want to take care of this.’ I went from the luxury suite to the dishpan, and it felt so great,” she told Skavlan.

Despite being close friends, there were still ups and downs amongst the group members. “It was hard being on this gigantic tour and doing all these concerts. And so, naturally there was some friction,” Faltskog explained. She didn’t go into detail but gave the impression there were no major issues with the other members, merely the types of fights that friends who spend so much time together go through.

Near the end of her time with ABBA, Faltskog began to struggle more with the idea of growing older and the passage of time. She said, “I did go through some hard times, and I felt I had to withdraw a bit. This was before my 50th birthday and I felt that time was passing so fast. And turning 50 is such a milestone, so for a couple of years I had the sensation of having achieved so much, I needed to focus on me.”

In 2013, a museum dedicated entirely to ABBA was opened in Stockholm. Faltskog told Skavlan about the experience of contributing to the archive: “I have recorded some material and I’ve donated some things. I have never been into having my walls covered with gold records and things. I’m a bit modest. I don’t want to flaunt it. I feel relieved now there’s a place where I can leave it all behind. A place where it will be kept safe.” Faltskog said she donated records, clothes and other things to the museum.

Personal Life

Ulvaeus and Faltskog have two children together; their daughter, Linda Elin Ulvaeus, was born in 1973, while their son, Peter Christian Ulvaeus, was born in 1977. The couple was divorced in 1979. Their split was really hard on Faltskog, and according to the Evening Standard, she received therapy to help cope after the breakup.

In 1993, it was announced that Faltskog was getting divorced from Tomas Sonnenfeld, who she had married in private three years prior. In 1994, her mother committed suicide, and her father passed a year later. Both of their deaths were also kept from the public until years later. It is thought that Faltskog decided to retire from the public after the death of her parents.

Faltskog has always had a fear of flying, but the phobia was made worse in 1979 when ABBA was touring in America, and the band’s plane hit a tornado and had to make an emergency landing on the way to Boston, Massachusetts. While touring as a solo artist, Faltskog always chose to travel by bus instead of by plane. 

According to Express, Faltskog has struggled with anxiety and stage fright throughout her career. The magazine quotes her as having said, “No one who has experienced facing a hysterical audience can avoid feeling shivers in the spine. It’s a thin line between celebration and menace.” This was especially true when performing in front of giant crowds with ABBA.

Faltskog is well aware of her difficulties with nerves and spoke openly and positively about the experience with Skavlan. The singer said, “I’m anxious, worried, a bit too much. But the positive thing is, it gives me a lot to offer. I’m emotional in my songs, so that’s positive.” It is inspirational to see someone who is going through so much fear find a silver lining. 

She continued, “I wouldn’t mind working in the studio only, I have a lot to offer there. But I know when you make a new record, there’s a lot attached to it.” At the end of the quote, she refers to the expectation to perform onstage when promoting a new album.

During the interview with Skavlan, the interviewer asked Faltskog if she enjoys silence. Her response was: “I really do. I felt there had been so many different sounds in my head, too many songs and too many lyrics. I feel there are too many sounds going on simultaneously nowadays. I get stressed out when there is more than one sound going on at the same time. If I’m with my dogs and they are barking and I am listening to music, it’s easier to just turn the music off. “

For years Faltskog has led an entirely private life. Even her neighbors have said, “We’ve been here for eight years and I’ve only seen her 15 times,” reports Express. The artist lives with her family and dogs in Ekerö, Sweden.

Since her last album was released in 2013, Faltskog has been focused on other areas of her life that bring her joy. She told The Guardian, “I have been described as very mysterious, but I’m not, I think I’m just very grounded. My life contains so many other things; I have my children, my grandchildren, my two dogs, and a big place in the country. I have my own life.”

Now that she has more free time spending it with her loved ones has become a priority for Faltskog. “When I have time off I want to spend it with my kids, grandkids and dog. Sometimes, me and the grandkids will play the piano together,” the artist shared with Skavlan. It sounds like this awesome grandmother may be passing her love for music on to her grandkids. 

In the same interview, Faltskag shared that she had tried to write lullabies for her children and grandchildren, but they always turned into love songs. It seems that after years of writing and performing songs about love, the skill has become a reflex for her. She did not seem disappointed by this fact.

It has been eight years since the release of Faltskog’s latest album, “A,” but that does not mean she is retired. “I thought the record I made would be my last, but I don’t like to close any doors. If anything interesting shows up, I’ll listen,” she said. As long as she is open to the possibility, there will always be eager listeners waiting to hear what she comes up with next. 

And in 2021, an unexpected highlight happened: ABBA announced a virtual concert and their first album released after 40 years! The album, simply called "Voyage," was released late in 2021 and is (currently) the final and last album of the iconic pop band.

Faltskog has had a long career as a musician, performing solo and with the world-famous band ABBA. Were you ever a fan of ABBA or Faltskog’s music? What do you think of her appearance at 74? Let us know what you think, and be sure to send this story on to your friends, family, and other ABBA fans you know!

If you or anybody you know is struggling with thoughts of taking their own life, we urge you to visit befrienders.org to find your local suicide prevention hotline.