Björk and Rosalía Team Up to Release the Ethereal Song 'Oral' and Save Wild Salmon in Iceland
The Icelandic star and the Spanish singer released a charity single to prevent open-pen fishing practices in Iceland on Tuesday
Two of the most ethereal forces in music teamed up for a collaboration.
After Björk and Rosalía announced back in October that they were joining each other on a song, the two dropped the powerful collaboration “Oral” on Tuesday. Originally a song that the Icelandic icon, 58, worked on over two decades ago, she and the Spanish star, 31, updated the track and released it in order to raise funds for the non-profit organization AEGIS, which combats open-pen fish farming in Iceland.
“Oral” was first written and produced by the “Army of Me” singer between 1997’s Homogenic and 2001’s Vespertine, but shelved at the time, according to a press release. Upon rediscovering the archival track earlier this year, the singer-songwriter decided to complete it by joining forces with producer Sega Bodega to add additional production and the “Saoko” singer.
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Together, they’ve created a celestial-sounding stunner that pulls from Rosalía’s international music influence with a dance hall beat and Björk’s electro-pop flare. Their airy, cherub-like voices fuse like a romantic, sonic dreamscape as the two artists sing of the beautiful possibility of a budding relationship — sounding as if they’re on cloud nine.
The track arrives along with a fantastical music video directed by Carlota Guerrero. In the fierce visual, the video-game-like avatars of the two musicians wield swords while engaging in what looks more like a dance with one another than combat — as if preparing to fight another enemy — and sing side-by-side.
According to a press release, around the same time that the Dancer in the Dark star unearthed “Oral,” she was greatly affected by a report about the ecological impact of Norwegian-owned commercial salmon farming in her native Iceland and felt a call to action.
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All proceeds from the release will be donated in support of the Icelandic town of Seyðisfjörður’s legal case against Norwegian fisheries, whose farming practices have led to increased pollution and damage to salmon populations, per the release.
Ahead of the song’s release Björk spoke to Pitchfork about her vision for the charity release and why she decided to collaborate with the Grammy-winning flamenco singer.
“We are focusing on the solutions, to give people a voice,” she told the outlet of making a contemporary protest song out of a romantic pop song.
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She explained that when she considered revisiting the song, the "Con Altura" artist was instantly who came to mind and thought, “Maybe that’s a better way to get a guest vocalist, who sort of represents now, and there’s this tunnel into the past, us having this kind of conversation.”
“I’ve known her for a few years, so I just texted her, and she immediately said yes, before even having heard the song. I think she was also wanting to support the cause,” she added.
“Oral” marks the Icelandic singer’s first release of the year, following her acclaimed 2022 album Fossora. As for the Spanish hitmaker, it’s among a series of singles she’s dropped this year, including "LLYLM,” "Beso" with Rauw Alejandro and “Tuya.”
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