* Marie Eleonor Serneholt, born Monday July 11, 1983 in Stockholm.|* Amit Sebastian Paul, born Saturday October 29, 1983 in Boden.|* John Dhani Lennevald, born Tuesday July 24, 1984 in Stockholm.|* Sara Helena Lumholdt, born Thursday October 25, 1984 in Solna. [Formation and Name Change] In 1998, Marie, Amit, John, and Sara were musically united as the ABBA Teens. However, upon the request of Björn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson of the legendary Swedish group ABBA, the group’s name was changed to the A*Teens to avoid confusion. This choice allowed the band more freedom in creating their own style of music and not be solely based around ABBA. [The ABBA Generation] In 1999, the A*Teens released their first album ABBA Generation consisting purely of ABBA covers reinterpreted with a modern pop and techno flair to appeal to a new generation of young pop fans. The debut album hit #1 on Swedish charts and enjoyed international success, selling 110,00 copies in Chile and peaking at #71 on the United States’ Billboard 200. During that year, the A-Teens toured some with *NSYNC and Britney Spears. After they released their second album, Teen Spirit, a year later, they toured in the United States with Aaron Carter. [Building and Honing the A*Teens’ Sound] The A*Teens’ sophomore album, entitled Teen Spirit, featured a compilation of tracks that were not ABBA covers and showcased the group’s maturing, unique pop sound. This disc sold three million copies worldwide when it was released in 2001, peaking at #50 on the United States Billboard 200. The group promoted their album with a United States tour also featuring Aaron Carter. Amit, Sara, Marie, and John then released a third album, Pop Til You Drop, exclusively in the United States in 2002. In 2003, the European and Asian version of the album, entitled New Arrival (a throwback the ABBA album entitled Arrival), was released. Some of the material on these two albums was co-written by the members of the A*Teens. The majority of tracks, while recorded in Sweden, were the work of producers from the United States, Norway, Denmark. and Sweden. To promote the albums, the group headlined their own tour in 2002 with Play, LMNT and Jump5. Pop Til’ You Drop peaked at #45 on the Billboard 200 in the United States. Together with New Arrival, the A*Teens had sold over 1.6 million albums in 2002 and 2003. [Greatest Hits] The A*Teens’ fourth album Greatest Hits, was released in Europe in 2004 and has yet to be released in the United States. Though this album is a greatest hits compilation, a few new songs are included, such as a cover of Nick Kamen’s single I Promised Myself. The album sold 500,000 copies worldwide. Since the release of this album, the members of the band have taken a long-deserved break to pursue solo interests, though they left open the possibility of an eventual reunion. [Solo Efforts] In late 2004, Dhani Lennevald released his first single as a solo artist titled Girl Talk. In early 2006, Marie Serneholt has released her album ‘Enjoy The Ride’. Amit Paul and Sara Lumholdt are also working on solo ventures. |
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