ABBA’s Agnetha Fältskog & Björn Ulvaeus Have A Daughter Who Looks Just Like Her Mom

Jul 11, 2023

Agnetha Fältskog is a prime example of what dedication to one's dreams can achieve. The blonde singer and songwriter won the hearts of her audience at the peak of her music career and continues to hold sway in the industry today as an actress and a record producer. Fältskog always had a knack for music, and fortunately, her family supported her dreams. 

Her first attempt at making music was a song she wrote when she was just 6 years old, which is translated into English as "Two Small Trolls." Two years later, she joined the church choir and soon began a small band with two friends. However, the band quickly dissolved, ending the trio's tryst together with music. 

Fältskog always knew she wanted to make music so, at 15, she dropped out of school and started her music career professionally. She soon gained national prominence when her song "Jag var så kär," translated into "I Was So In Love," drew the media's attention. Shortly after that, she became one of Sweden's top pop stars and was number one on the Swedish charts at 18. 

The talented singer soon reached Germany when she became engaged to German producer Dieter Zimmermann, but the engagement and her musical foray into the country were short-lived. In 1968, Fältskog met her first husband Björn Ulvaeus. Together with Björn and two other friends, they began a group known today as ABBA. 

Known for her remarkable lyrics, angelic face and sweet soprano voice, Fältskog soon gave birth to a daughter Linda Elin Ulvaeus, who looks just like her. Fans bore witness to Fältskog and Linda’s striking resemblance when they saw the latter reading a book in a YouTube video posted in 2017. Find out more about Linda, her resemblance to her mom and much more below. 

Fältskog is most renowned today for being a member of ABBA. Fältskog was born in Jönköping, Sweden, on April 5, 1950. She is the oldest of two daughters, and her father showed an interest in music and show business when she was young, while her mother focused on the household and family. 

In early 1960, when Fältskog was only 10, she formed a musical trio called the Cambers with her two 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, Fältskog started singing in a dance band headed by Bernt Enghardt. Her first single was a song she wrote for the band, which was titled “I Was So In Love.”

While with the band, Fältskog also held a job as a telephonist for a car firm. Once the dance band began to gain popularity, she quit her job. Fältskog was a member of the band for two years, but things became complicated when a music producer, Karl Gerhard Lundkvist from Cupol 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 as a solo singer and leave the rest of her band members behind.  

Fältskog decided to sign the deal and released “I Was So In Love” as her debut single in 1967. The song sold more than 80,000 copies and reached the top of the Swedish charts by January 1968. Fältskog quickly developed a career as one of Sweden’s most popular pop music artists. 

In 1969, when Fältskog was 18 years old, 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. The year would also be an auspicious year for Fältskog as it was also when she met her future husband, Bjorn.

Bjorn and Fältskog 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. They came up with the group name by taking all the first letters of their names and rearranged them. 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, Fältskog 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. Fältskog 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.

Fältskog 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, Fältskog and Bjorn started a family together, welcoming daughter Linda Ulvaeus in 1973 and Peter Christian Ulvaeus in 1977. This meant there were times when practice and other engagements were delayed due to her pregnancies. In 1980, Bjorn and Fältskog got divorced, but they worked hard not to let their separation affect the band.

Being a mother and a pop star at the same time had been challenging, but Fältskog has since said she wouldn’t have had 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 among the group members. Fältskog said in the same interview that “being on this gigantic tour and doing all these concerts… naturally there was some friction." Near the end of her time with ABBA, Fältskog 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.”

Fältskog took her split from Bjorn quite hard and, according to the Evening Standard, she had to undergo therapy to help cope after the breakup. Things weren’t so rosy for their bandmates either.  Lyngstad and Andersson, who had been married since 1978, also divorced the year after Fältskog and Bjorn. The band strove to keep making music but the personal challenges took their toll and the ABBA foursome announced everyone was going their separate ways in 1982.

Besides her romantic woes, Fältskog was also dealing with some personal issues. Fältskog 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 after ABBA’s split, Fältskog always chose to travel by bus instead of by plane. 

According to Express, Fältskog also struggled with anxiety and stage fright throughout her career. The magazine quoted 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.” She said this was especially true when performing in front of giant crowds with ABBA.

Fältskog has since spoken openly and positively about her inner turmoil, and told Skavlan: 

“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.”

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.”

In 1990, Fältskog married medical surgeon Tomas Sonnenfeld but by 1993, they, too, were divorced. In 1994, her mother committed suicide, and her father passed away a year later. Both of their deaths were also kept from the public until years later. For years, Fältskog led an entirely private life. Even her neighbors said, “We’ve been here for eight years and I’ve only seen her 15 times,” Express reported of the artist, who settled with her family and dogs in Ekerö, Sweden.

However, her passion for music was too hard to dampen, and after taking a break since 1988, she returned to the scene in 2004 with the single “If I Thought You'd Ever Change Your Mind.” It was a hit in Sweden and peaked at number two on the charts. 

In 2013, Fältskog released her album “A.” However, despite returning to recording music, Fältskog said she now lives a more balanced life. 

“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,” she told The Guardian.

Now that she has more free time spending it with her loved ones has become a priority for Fältskog. She also told Skavlan, “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.” 

Although it has been many years since “A,” Fältskog isn’t ready to close the door on music quite yet. 

“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 added. 

Meanwhile, Fältskog’s daughter Linda's strong resemblance to her mom wowed many when they saw her reading a book in a YouTube video posted in 2017. The video showed how much the 50-year-old resembles her mom as she flaunted her sweet soprano voice, blonde hair and oval-shaped face — attributes Fältskog possesses.

Some of the comments read: "She's got her mom's features. Remembering looking at her as a child by the video's of ABBA's concerts, singing with the children's choir and it's quite something how she looks now over those years."

Another user commented: "She sounds just like Agnetha! If she sang, it would be amazing." A third user wrote: "Linda sounds (like) Anietha. She is perfect singer too. Mummy's beautiful and smart daughter."

Linda is an actress and singer. She was born on Feb. 23, 1973, and is married to Jens Ekengren with whom she shares three children, including Tilda Ekengren, an expert equestrian. The Swedish star released her first music album when she was just 8 in 1981, though it was recorded in 1980. Afterward, she backed up for her mom on her 2004 single, "When You Walk in the Room." 

Besides making music, Linda has established a career as one of Sweden's top actresses with films like “Under the Sun” and “Quick.” In addition, she is a book author and has written two books titled, "Leja li och tandfén" (Leja li and the tooth fairy) and "Leja Li och busbullen" (Leja Li and the bus bun). Linda also co-wrote a third book, "Sammy hjälper till" (Sammy Helps) in 2020 with four others. 

With a face and voice like her mom's, the gifted star continues to capture the hearts of her audience. One can only hope this remains the case for a long time.

Do you know ABBA's Agnetha Fältskog? Have you listened to any of her songs? Do you think she and her daughter look very much alike? Let us know — and be sure to pass this article on to friends and family members!