Robin Miriam Carlsson, better known by her stage name Robyn (born June 12, 1979) is a Swedish pop singer-songwriter and is widely known in her homeland. Robyn was known in the late nineties for her dance-pop hits "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know (What it Takes)". Robyn entered Melodifestivalen 1997 as songwriter with the entry "Du gör mig hel igen". She has since started to gain mainstream success worldwide owing to the popularity of her single "With Every Heartbeat" and subsequent album release.

1991-1993: Discovery

In 1991 and at the age of 13, Robyn recorded the theme song for the Swedish television show Lilla Sportspegeln, named Du kan alltid bli nummer ett ("You can always be number one"). She also performed her first self-written song at this age in another TV show called Söndagsöppet.

Robyn was rediscovered by Swedish pop singer Meja in the early nineties. Meja and her band Legacy of Sound visited Robyn's school and were involved with a musical workshop. Robyn's performances captivated the "All About The Money" singer; so much so that Meja contacted her management and a meeting was arranged with Robyn and her parents. Following the completion of her middle school education, Robyn signed to Ricochet Records Sweden, a subsidiary of BMG. She collaborated with producers Max Martin and Denniz Pop who provided the singer with a gritty yet popular sound. Writing duties were assisted by Ulf Lindstrom and Johan Ekhe, who also helped to produce the album, and they stayed on board with Robyn until the completion of her "Don't Stop The Music" opus in 2003.

1994-1997: Robyn Is Here

Robyn started out her career in the pop music scene at age 16. She signed a record deal with RCA Records in 1994 to release her debut single "You've Got That Somethin'" in Sweden. Later that same year, her Swedish breakthrough came with the single "Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect)". These singles became part of the album Robyn Is Here. Robyn entered Swedens pre-selection for Eurovision Song Contest 1997, as songwriter and producer of the song "Du gör mig hel igen" which was performed by Cajsalisa Ejemyr. In Melodifestivalen 1997 the song ended up in 4th place.

Robyn's US breakthrough came in 1997 when the dance-pop singles "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know (What it Takes)" were released. These singles both ended up in the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100. She performed on the kid's show All That in 1997, singing "Show Me Love", proving her growing popularity in the United States. The songs also performed well in the UK. She also re-released "Do You Really Want Me (Show Respect)" internationally but it did not fare as well as the other releases. It was ineligible to chart since there was no retail single available, but it reached no. 32 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart.

As Robyn's popularity grew across the globe, especially in the United States. Robyn was diagnosed with exhaustion and she quickly returned to Sweden to recover.