--- description: TIME sat down with pop singer Zara Larsson to discuss her latest song "Ruin My Life" and her experience growing up in the public eye. title: Zara Larsson Is a Pop Star Who's About More Than Just the Music image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt143e0acfc407fccf/698943fb096a94fec06a4709/zara-larsson.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Music](/tag/music/) ## Music Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Zara Larsson Is a Pop Star Who's About More Than Just the Music  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 29, 2019 1:18 AM CUT  Zara Larsson performs on stage during Fusion Festival 2018 at Otterspool Parade on September 2, 2018 in Liverpool, England. Zara Larsson performs on stage during Fusion Festival 2018 at Otterspool Parade on September 2, 2018 in Liverpool, England.Carla Speight—Getty Images  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jan 29, 2019 1:18 AM CUT Swedish pop star [Zara Larsson](http://time.com/4704699/zara-larsson-so-good-interview/ "undefined") has been in the spotlight for the better part of her life: After competing on a Swedish television talent show as a preteen, she picked up a record deal and released her first major international album, _So Good_, in 2016\. Her breakout hits, like “Never Forget You,” “Lush Life” and the Clean Bandit collaboration [“Symphony,”](http://time.com/4785837/best-songs-2017-so-far/item/clean-bandit-ft-zara-larsson-symphony/ "undefined") are layered, orchestral pop tracks that dare you not to dance along to her soulful voice. They also became streaming successes: Larsson has well over a billion song streams on Spotify alone. Her latest single, “Ruin My Life,” is another catchy entry into her catalogue. But as she’s grown up at the center of attention, Larsson, 21, has made one thing clear: she’s about much more than just dance music. She’s an outspoken feminist who promotes sexual health without compromising her fun-loving image. She started out by speaking candidly in blog posts and on social media when she was younger. Last fall, she signed on as a face of Durex for an AIDS prevention campaign. “I would definitely like to think of myself as a role model,” Larsson says. “Again, I’m a person; I’m not perfect, but I don’t think anyone expects me to be,” she adds, recognizing that existing in such a public space means making mistakes. “Ruin My Life” received [some criticism](https://www.bigtop40.com/news/zara-larsson-ruin-my-life-feminist/ "undefined") upon its release from fans who didn’t think the message tallied with Larsson’s progressive image. But Larsson sees it differently. “I don’t want to encourage people to stay in a relationship… that isn’t good for you, but I think we’ve all been there at least once,” she reflects. It wasn’t her first experience with negativity on social media, either, as she has [been subject](https://www.thelocal.se/20160401/swedish-teen-pop-star-hits-out-at-online-abuse "undefined") to online abuse in response to expressions of her feminism. TIME sat down with Larsson to talk about the song — now in its third week on the _Billboard_ [Hot 100](https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100 "undefined"), having recently gone up to top 20 on pop radio — and her experience as a young but assertive artist maturing in a challenging industry. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5512697/zara-larsson-interview-ruin-my-life/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5512697/zara-larsson-interview-ruin-my-life/"},"headline":"Zara Larsson Is a Pop Star Who's About More Than Just the Music","datePublished":"2019-01-29T01:18:01.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:57:06.398Z","description":"The Swedish singer sits down with TIME to discuss her journey and her latest single, \"Ruin My Life\"","url":"https://time.com/5512697/zara-larsson-interview-ruin-my-life/","keywords":["Music","Newsfeed"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt143e0acfc407fccf/698943fb096a94fec06a4709/zara-larsson.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt143e0acfc407fccf/698943fb096a94fec06a4709/zara-larsson.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Fusion Festival 2018","caption":"Fusion Festival 2018","creditText":"Carla Speight—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/music/","name":"Music"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5512697/zara-larsson-interview-ruin-my-life/","name":"Zara Larsson Is a Pop Star Who's About More Than Just the Music"}}]}] ```