Biography
Anita
was
born
as
the
eldest
of
three
children
on
3
March
1961
in
Sandefjord,
a
small
town
near
the
Oslofjord
in
the
south
east
of
Norway.
Before
she
had
reached
the
age
of
10
she
was
known
throughout
Norway
as
“our
little
darling”.
“Anita
from
Sandefjord
is
our
new
pop
discovery”
and
“7
year
old
heart
throb
on
course
for media stardom” read the headlines of the first newspaper articles in her Norwegian home country.
Anita
was
discovered
in
December
1968
at
a
Christmas
party
for
children
in
Sandefjord.
Father
Christmas
encouraged
the
children
to
walk
up
to
him
and
sing
a
song.
Anita
jumped
onto
the
stage
and
immediately
won
the
hearts
of
everyone
listening
with
her
songs
“I
natt
jag
drömde”
(Last
night
I
dreamt)
and
“Kom
til
meg”
(Come
to
me).
Father
Christmas
turned
out
to
be
Norwegian
entertainer
and
songwriter
Fredrik
Friis
Olsen,
who
there
and
then
invited
her
to
an
audition.
The
next
day’s
newspaper
carried
the
headline
“Yesterday a star was born”.
Six
months
later
Anita
launched
her
first
single
in
Norway
with
the
songs
“Albertino/Hvis
jeg
var
en
fugl”.
Both
songs
became
huge
hits
and
Anita’s
bright
and
bubbly
personality
combined
with
her
fantastic
voice
took
the
public
by
storm.
She
launched
her
first
album,
“Trollmannen
Lurifiks”,
the
same
year,
and
other
successful
recordings
quickly
followed,
each
achieving
huge
sales.
Anita
swiftly
gained
several
silver,
gold,
diamond
and
platinum
records.
In
1970
Anita
recorded
her
first
Swedish
single
“Mitt
sommarlov”
and
immediately
reached
second
place
in
the
“Svensktoppen”
where
she
remained
for
a
total
of
eleven
weeks
including
seven
weeks
as
Number
One.
Bulgaria
also
took
notice
of
her
and
she
thrilled
the
public
at
the
International
Bulgarian
Song
Contest
“Golden
Orpheus”.
In
the
same
year
the
Norwegian
newspaper
“VG”
awarded
her
the
Silver
Box
for
her
achievements;
and
at
the
end
of
the
year
she
was
voted
the
“Best
Loved
Female
Singer
of
the
Year”
by
an
overwhelming
majority
of
readers
of
the
Norwegian
magazine
“DET
NYE”.
In
early
1971
“DET
NYE”
presented
her
with
the
Silver
Microphone
in
recognition
of
this
vote.
Anita
took
part
in
the
Norwegian
selections
for
the
Eurovision
Song
Contests
in
1971
with
“Gig
meg
en
Zebra”
where
she
came fourth and in 1972 with “Happy Hippie” where she came third.
From
the
start
Anita
was
accompanied
on
her
travels
and
all
her
stage
appearances
by
her
mother
Thurid.
In
Germany,
where
Anita
has
been
known
since
1971
and
quickly
became
a
favourite
with
the
public,
Thurid
was
always
around
to
look
after
her
cheerful
and
lively
little
girl.
Together
with
the
unforgotten
German
singer
Roy
Black,
the
then
ten
year
old
sang
the
great
hit
“Schön
ist
es
auf
der
Welt
zu
sein”
(Great
to
be
alive)
and
won
gold
twice:
the
“Goldener
Löwe”
(Golden
Lion)
awarded
by
Radio
Luxembourg
and
the
“Goldene
Schallplatte”
(Golden
Record).
The
song
stayed
in
the
German
top
ten
for
18
weeks
and
came
third
in
the
charts
in
Denmark,
where
the
pair
were
awarded
the
Cup
of
Copenhagen
in
recognition
of
their
achievement.
“Schön
ist
es
auf
der
Welt
zu
sein”
now
ranks
amongst
the
golden
oldies
in
Germany,
Austria,
Switzerland,
Scandinavia and the Benelux countrie.
In
1972
Anita
and
Roy
Black
joined
the
Fischer
choirs
in
their
tour
of
Germany.
(The
Fischer
choirs
are
children’s
and
adult
choirs
conducted
by
Gotthilf
Fischer;
they
sometimes
combine
to
form
a
single
choir
of
around
1,500
voices).
The
stage
was
“bombarded”
with
soft
toys
and
flowers,
and
Anita’s
hotel
rooms
often
resembled
florist’s
shops.
Anita
and
Roy
frequently
appeared
in
TV
shows,
where
Anita
also
won
her
audiences
over
with
solo
titles
such
as
“Cowboy
Susie”,
“Papi
und
Mami”
or
“Der
frechste
Spatz
vom
Campingplatz”.
Her
“big”
colleagues,
including
Roy
Black,
Peter
Alexander,
fellow
Norwegian
Wencke
Myhre
and
the
producers
enjoyed
working
with
the
talented
little
girl.
Anita’s
self-discipline,
her
easy-going
nature
and
her
ability
to
concentrate
during
recordings,
or
rehearsals
for
TV
shows,
even
after
several
repetitions,
continually amazed the adults.
Alongside
her
singing
career
Anita,
together
with
the
German
singers
Roy
Black
and
Chris
Roberts
and
the
Dutch-born
presenter
Rudi
Carrell
(to
name
but
a
few),
also
starred
in
three
films
made
between
1971
and
1973.
Anita
has
particularly
fond
memories
of
filming
near
Lake
Wörth
in
Austria
where
she
was
joined
by
all
her family who spent their holiday there. “The time in Austria was incredibly good fun” she remembers.
In
1972
Anita
was
invited
to
get
involved
in
the
Norwegian
version
of
Walt
Disney’s
“Mary
Poppins”
(Jane
Bank)
and
in
1973
she
sang
“Eget
hjem”
in
“Jungle
Book”
and
also
did
the
voice-over
for
the
girl
from
the
human settlement
By
1976
Anita
had
produced
several
more
records
in
Scandinavia
and
Germany
before
she
took
a
break
to
focus on her education.
Between
1980
and
1985
Anita
successfully
launched
three
albums
and
several
singles
in
Scandinavia.
The
single
“What
about
me”
was
top
of
the
charts
in
the
whole
of
Scandinavia
in
1982.
In
the
summer
Anita
toured
Norway
and
Sweden
and
was
voted
the
most
successful
female
artist
Norway’s.
In
1983
she
again
entered
the
national
selection
for
the
Eurovision
Song
Contest,
singing
“Nå
er
jeg
alene".
In
addition
she
performed
on
the
Canary
Islands
of
Gran
Canary,
Lanzarote
and
Tenerife.
In
Bulgaria
she
was
dubbed
a
“superstar”
and
became
a
crowd
puller
for
many
TV
shows.
She
also
took
part
in
the
Bulgarian
song
festival
where she won the audience award.
In
early
1982
Anita
was
given
another
chance
to
showcase
her
acting
talent
in
the
film
“Six
Guns
and
Country-Western-Show.
Filming
of
the
musical
western
took
place
in
Miami,
Florida.
Anita
starred
in
two
further films, both filmed in Norway and shown in 1985 and 1987.
The
terrible
famine
in
Africa
in
1985
was
the
catalyst
for
“Forente
Artister”,
a
group
of
Norwegian
artists
and
musicians
who
got
together
to
record
the
song
“Sammen,
For
Livet”
(Together
for
life).
All
profits
from
the
sale
of
the
song
were
donated
to
aid
projects
in
the
African
disaster
areas.
Of
course
Anita
did
not
hesitate
to
join them, which was, in fact, entirely in line with her own wish to help.
1984
saw
her
first
meeting
with
the
British
composer
and
multi-instrumentalist
Mike
Oldfield.
As
part
of
his
“Discovery
Tour”
he
gave
a
concert
in
Norway
where
Anita
handed
him
a
demo
tape
with
her
songs.
He
got
in
touch
with
her
a
year
later
to
record
a
video
single,
“Pictures
in
the
Dark”.
The
song
quickly
reached
the
German
top
ten
and
came
first
in
all
the
international
charts;
and
the
music
broadcaster
MTV
played
it
several
times
a
day.
Recordings
for
the
worldwide
first
ever
video
album
followed
at
locations
in
Bali
and
Cornwall.
Anita
and
Mike
soon
became
a
couple.
The
video
album
“The
Wind
Chimes”
was
launched
in
September
1988;
the
corresponding
CD
“Islands”
had
been
available
for
sale
since
1987.
Anita
performed
the
vocal
parts
of
“The
Wind
Chimes
–
Part
One
and
Part
Two”
and
sang
three
songs:
“North
Point”,
“The
Time
Has
Come”
and
“When
the
Night’s
on
Fire”.
Anita’s
and
Mike’s
daughter
Greta
was
born
in
1988.
She
inspired
Mike
to
write
the
song
“Innocent”
from
his
album
“Earth
Moving”,
which
–
sung
by
Anita
–
reached
the
top
of
the
charts in Germany and several other European countries. Their son Noah was born in 1990.
During
the
time
she
shared
with
Mike,
Anita
performed
in
European
concert
halls
in
front
of
20,000
to
30,000
strong
audiences
and,
together
with
Mike,
appeared
in
the
top
European
TV
shows.
In
Germany,
these
included
“Peter’s
Pop
Show”,
Germany’s
biggest
TV
show
of
the
time,
attracting
an
audience
worldwide
of
350
million
as
well
as
world
class
stars
such
as
Bryan
Adams,
Whitney
Houston,
Natalie
Cole
etc,
and
Thomas
Gottschalk’s
popular
“Wetten
Dass”
(I
bet
you),
which
reached
an
audience
of
30
million.
In
Paris,
Anita
and
Mike
were
presented
with
the
“Diamond
Award”
for
their
music.They
also
performed
in
several
of
the
biggest
English
TV
shows
together
with
Phil
Collins,
John
Cleese,
Michael
Palin
and
Eric
Idle,
and
were
invited
to
HRH
Prince
Charles
at
his
Windsor
Castle
together
with
Mick
Jagger,
Jerry
Hall,
Keith
Richards,
Shirley
Bassey,
Roger
Moore,
Midge
Ure
and
Phil
Collins.
Bonnie
Tyler
joined
Mike
and
Anita
for
a
small
tour
in
Europe,
doing
some
big
TV
shows
like
The
Diamond
Awards
in
Belgium
together
with
Cher,
Princess
Stephanie of Monaco and Brigitte Nielsen.
Anita
and
Mike
separated
in
1991
and
Anita
and
her
two
children
returned
to
her
Norwegian
home,
where
she
took a break from performing until 1994.
In
1994,
Anita
launched
her
album
“Voices”,
which
included
some
of
her
own
texts
and
music.
“Voices”
comprises
melodious
rock
and
pop
songs
as
well
as
Irish-Celtic
influenced
folk
songs.
In
this
album,
Anita’s
unique
voice,
which
comfortably
has
a
range
of
three
and
a
half
octaves,
comes
into
its
own.
Anita
herself
regards
the
album
as
the
artistically
most
satisfying
recording
she
has
ever
produced.
“Voices”
returned
Anita to the limelight and also to Germany.
In
1996
Anita
got
involved
in
the
dubbing
of
two
more
Walt
Disney
films.
She
voiced
the
part
of
the
female
lead
(Jane)
in
“Tarzan
and
Jane”
and,
a
year
later,
the
part
of
the
female
lead
(Megara)
in
“Hercules”
where
she also sang "Han er meg kjær".
A
tour
with
the
Dizzie
Tunes,
one
of
Norway’s
most
successful
musical
show
groups,
followed
between
1997
and
1998.
They
appeared
120
times,
performing
the
revue
“Dizzie
og
damene”
in
front
of
enthusiastic
audiences.
Anita
returned
to
Germany
once
more
in
1998.
Based
on
reader/listener
votes,
the
tabloid
“BILD”
and
local
broadcaster
Radio
Bremen
presented
the
50
most
popular
hits
of
all
times,
and
Anita
accepted
the
"Goldene
Schlager-BILD
CD"
(Golden
Pop-BILD
CD)
award
on
behalf
of
all
the
artists.
"Schön
ist
es
auf
der
Welt
zu
sein", the song she had sung together with Roy Black all those years before, was amongst the winners.
“Candle
in
the
Wind”
–
a
musical
tribute
to
Elton
John
–
was
the
next
show
where
Anita
appeared
as
a
solo
singer.
Between
September
and
December
1998
she
performed
on
stage
over
80
times
together
with
a
number
of
other
Scandinavian
artists
and
a
great
orchestra.
To
huge
applause
from
the
audience,
the
show
presented Elton John’s most famous songs.
Anita
was
again
guest
in
Germany
in
January
1999.
She
was
invited
to
appear
in
the
show
“Die
BILD-
Schlagerkönige”
(BILD
“Kings
of
the
Charts”)
and
to
join
one
of
the
“Kings
of
the
Charts”
in
the
song
“Schön
ist
es
auf
der
Welt
zu
sein”.
Over
the
following
few
months
she
only
performed
in
Norway
as
she
was
expecting her third child.
After
her
daughter
Kaja
was
born,
Anita
took
another
break
from
show
business
in
order
to
focus
on
her
family.
As
the
welfare
of
children
is
very
close
to
her
heart,
she
produced
a
CD
of
all
her
best
children’s
songs
which
was
launched
in
2000
under
the
title
“Anitas
beste
barnesanger”.
Anita
dedicated
the
album
to
all Norwegian children. “We can learn a lot from you” she wrote on the cover.
Her
concern
for
the
needs
of
children
also
led
Anita
to
join
Norwegian
company
Pinjata,
which
develops,
produces
and
publishes
educational
and
other
computer
games
for
children
aged
between
3
and
12
(
www.pinjata.com
).
The
most
successful
of
these
games
centre
around
rabbit
girl
Josefine
and
her
adventures
with
her
friend
Sofus
and
are
designed
to
help
children
gain
confidence
in
handling
everyday
experiences
in
their
lives.
Anita’s
responsibility
included
media/radio/TV
relations
and
marketing
and
she
was
also
involved
in
the
production
of
shows,
songs
and
games.
Together
with
her
sister
Renate
she
initiated the creation and marketing of “The Josefine Bread”, which is still available in Norwegian shops.
During
this
time
Anita
also
spent
more
time
in
Germany.
She
still
mourns
Roy
Black,
her
wonderful
childhood
friend,
and
came
specially
for
the
various
tribute
shows
that
were
broadcast
on
German
television
on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of his death in 2001.
A
further
charity
performance
followed
in
2002
when
Anita
was
joined
by
a
children’s
choir
in
the
song
“Små
Blomster"
(Small
Flowers)
to
support
“Stine
Sofies
Stiftelse”,
a
Norwegian
Trust
aimed
at
protecting
children
against violence and abuse.
Anita’s
next
visit
to
Germany
came
in
November
2003
when
she
appeared
in
RTL
television’s
“The
70s
Show”,
presented
by
Hape
Kerkeling.
After
an
interview,
Anita
and
Hape
finished
the
programme
with
her
old
hit "Schön ist es auf der Welt zu sein".
The
terrible
tsunami
in
December
2004
prompted
Anita
to
join
several
other
Norwegian
artists
in
January
2005,
who
had
come
together
as
“Diverse
Artister”
in
order
to
sing
the
song
“Venn”
(Friend)
in
aid
of
the
tsunami victims.
In
July
2007
Anita
joined
Maxi
Arland
for
one
of
his
“Musikantendampfer”
(Musical
steamer)
folk
music
shows
on German television.
During
the
last
few
years
Anita
has
carried
out
various
stage
and
concert
engagements
in
Norway.
In
2009
she
celebrated
her
40th
anniversary
on
stage
there,
and
yet
again
took
part
in
the
Norwegian
selection
for
the
Eurovision
Song
Contest
with
KeSera,
a
Norwegian
rap
group.
In
2010
she
thrilled
her
audience
in
Sandefjord with songs at the “Født i Sandefjord” (Born in Sandefjord) show.
In
the
spring
of
2011
Anita
had
the
opportunity
of
welcoming
several
visitors
from
Germany.
A
team
from
the
German
broadcaster
“ARD”
filmed
her
in
Norway
on
the
occasion
of
her
40th
anniversary
on
the
Germany
stage
and
her
planned
international
comeback.
The
recordings
were
broadcast
as
part
of
the
“Brisant”
programme
and
Anita
and
her
band
introduced
the
song
“Closer”
from
her
new
album
“Starfish”.
Several
weekly
magazines
published
articles
on
Anita
and
her
comeback
and
travelled
to
Oslo
for
interviews
and
photos.
Anita
has
been
delighted
with
the
visits
from
Germany
and
the
continuing
interest
in
her
and
her
career.
On
12
August
2011,
at
the
Elverum
festival,
Anita
launched
her
new
"Starfish"
CD
in
the
presence
of
around
2,000
enthusiastic
fans.
The
following
October
her
Power
Pop
/
Rock
Album
came
out,
and
for
over
40
weeks
has
now
ranked
among
the
top
three
in
Finland's
download
chart
Meteli.net,
the
country’s
most
comprehensive
music
download
website
with
over
1.2
million
songs.
"Starfish"
managed
to
maintain
its
No
1
position
for
24
weeks
and
was
No
2
for
several
weeks.
By
the
way,
"Starfish"
is
the
only
Norwegian
album
that has been so successful.
In
the
autumn
of
2011
on
the
occasion
of
her
40th
stage
anniversary,
Anita
and
Chris
Boltendahl
re-recorded
her
title
"Schön
ist
es
auf
der
Welt
zu
sein"
as
a
heavy
metal
version,
which
she
presented
it
to
her
audience
on 21 October.
On
23
October
2011
Anita
appeared
in
the
ZDF
show
"Willkommen
bei
Carmen
Nebel"
(Welcome
to
Carmen
Nebel)
and
enjoyed
a
reunion
with
her
German
fans,
who
had
not
forgotten
her
after
all
these
years
and
had
fond memories of her.
2012/2013
Anita
was
celebrating
her
40th
anniversary
with
her
"Starfish"
European
tour.
She
still
managed
to
thrill
her
audience;
every
show
ended
with
standing
ovations
and
Anita
never
left
the
stage
without
encores.
Critics
were
taken
with
Anita's
unique
voice
and
her
charisma.
"She
has
a
golden
voice"
or
"She
sings
with
unbelievable
rock
power
and
fascinates
her
audience"
were
some
of
the
comments
that
appeared
in
the
press
time and again.
Over
and
above
this
Anita
is
always
happy
to
make
time
for
visits
from
photographers
and
the
press,
whom
she
deals
with
in
her
usual
friendly
and
open
manner,
always
ready
for
photo
shoots
and
interviews
for
publication in her Norwegian home or abroad.
And
what
a
huge
success,
“STARFISH”
held,
for
nearly
40
weeks,
the
1st
position
in
the
Norwegian
downloading
list
from
meteli.net,
Finland,
containing
3366
Norwegian
albums,
1538
bands/artists,
39563
songs including all the bestselling ones.
The
Television,
media
and
of
course
the
audience
were
thrilled
with
"STARFISH",
this
all-round
successfully,
fantastic Album.
Interest
in
Anita
in
Germany
also
continues
to
be
strong.
In
January
2012
Anita
starred
in
the
German
TV
chat
show
“Kölner
Treff”
(Meeting
Point
Cologne)
and
she
appeared
in
celebrity
magazines
throughoutthe
year.
In
September
Anita
was
invited
to
be
a
VIP
guest
at
the
“Gold
Star
VIP
Party”
at
the
“Oktoberfest”
in
Munich.Despite
her
busy
schedule
Anita
accepted
the
invitation
and
was
reunited
with
numerous
former
colleagues
and
friends.
The
German
media
were
also
thrilled
to
see
her
again.
It
was
only
natural
for
Anita
to
take
this
opportunity
to
visit
the
grave
of
her
old
friend
and
duet
partner
Roy
Black,
who
sadly
died
much
too
young.
Anita
also
used
her
trip
to
meet
up
with
Roy’s
brother
and
his
lovely
wife
and
agreed
to
attend
a
photo
session
with
Erwin
Schneider,
one
of
the
most
sought
after
German
star
photographers,
who
had
already
been to see her in Norway on a number of occasions.
2013
has
already
got
off
to
a
good
start.
In
January
Anita
was
guest
in
the
German
TV
channel
ARD
in
the
Florian
Silbereisen
Show
“Winterfest
der
fliegenden
Stars”
and
The
“frau
aktuell”
magazine
delighted
Anita’s
German fans with an amazing colour spread in the first week of the year.
On
the
whole
2013
was
a
very
exhausting
year
for
Anita.She
was
very
busy
in
her
home
country
of
Norway
and
was
celebrated
by
the
most
enthusiastic
audiences
in
many
fantastic
shows.
The
press
raved
about
her
and she received brilliant feedback and top ratings from literally every member of the audience.
In
addition
to
her
shows,
numerous
interviews
with
Anita
appeared
in
the
Norwegian
and
Swedish
media,
on
radio
stations
and
on
Norwegian
TV.
Inbetween,
on
07
June,
a
remake
of
Anita´s
great
childhood
hit
“Trollmannen
Lurifiks”,
with
Captain
Fredd
and
Berserk
Band,
came
out
as
an
MP3
download.
On
12
October
Anita
was
a
guest
at
Eva
Lutz´s
Minx
Fashion
Night
Charity
Gala
at
the
Würzburg
Residence
Palace
in
Germany.
Anita,
perfect
as
ever,
and
her
excellent
guitarist
Tore
St.
Moren
completely
bowled
their
audience
over.
Both
performed
brilliantly
and
were
not
able
to
leave
the
stage
without
encore.
At
the
end
of
November
Anita
was
hired
for
two
shows
in
Gran
Canaria,
where
she
also
received
standing
ovations
from
her
enthusiastic audience.
2014 to 2015 were very busy years for Anita. Although we didn´t hear very much from her in Germany, she
was still very active. In Norway and internationally Anita appeared in front of enthusiastic audiences in many
fantastic shows. She achieved a great press each time with positive feedback and best reviews from
literally every listener. Over and above this, in 2014 she gave numerous performances to celebrate 45 years
on stage and each time received huge cheers from the crowd.
One of the high points in 2015 was Anita´s induction into the international Rockabilly Hall of Fame in Jackson,
Tennessee. This honour is only awarded to the world´s greatest stars, chosen by a committee of music
historians, and recognizes Anita´s more than 45-year-career in the international music business.
In December 2015 Anita´s fans worldwide were thrilled when she published her new studio album, which she
had produced in Oslo to celebrate her 45th-anniversary. Apart from the shows and her work in the studio,
Anita was interviewed by the Norwegian and international press, radio stations and television.
2016 was not less busy and just as successful. Anita performed nationally and internationally (in Norway,
Sweden, Germany, Austria, Thailand) and appeared in over 150 concerts, including 22 Christmas concerts
with the Norwegian tenor Lars Hansen, as well as giving interviews to television, radio and press.
In Germany Anita introduced her new album on both radio and television. In addition regional radio stations
Radio Berlin and Antenne Brandenburg interviewed her about her extraordinarily long and successful career.
During the Stefanie Hertel Show in September she performed her new Song “Kleiner Schatz” (Little Darling)
and, with her daughter Kaya, presented a new version of her huge early hit “Schön ist es auf der Welt zu sein”
(Great to be alive), which was met with massive cheers from a delighted audience. In November, invited by
German TV channel ZDF, Anita and her family travelled to Germany for another television recording. With her
daughters Greta and Kaya she starred in the show “Heiligabend mit Carmen Nebel” (Christmas Eve with
Carmen Nebel) . The three Hegerlands sang the carol “Glade jul”, the Norwegian version of “Silent Night”,
accompanied by Anita´s excellent guitarist Espen Rogne, who had also travelled from Norway. Anita´s
granddaughter (just under 3 years old) was on the stage with them and enchanted the audience by her
unselfconscious manner. Norwegian TV station NRK was proud to follow Anita to Germany in order to
produce a documentary about her career and her stay there for a special broadcast.
2017 promises to become another exciting year in Anita´s career. As early as 7 January she had a celebrated
appearance on Finish television.
When Anita appears on stage, it takes only a few notes for her to click with the audience and to create a
magical atmosphere. Her fans across the world look forward to meeting her and listening to her golden voice
at one of her concerts in 2017.
Anita remains Norway´s solo artist with globally the highest number of album sales. She has sold more than
7 million records and won 26 Silver, Gold, Diamond and Platinum records. In addition, her songs have been
part of over 30 million compilations worldwide. Even now, Anita´s fantastic voice still reaches three and a half
octaves effortlessly.
.
