Sigrid talks stepping into rockstar mode at Reading Festival 2021

“I haven’t felt this good in a really long time,” beams Sigrid backstage having just arrived on-site at Reading 2021. “This could easily turn into a very cheesy interview, but yeah – it’s magical. Just the feeling we had with the band today when we were travelling from London and felt the tour bus moving. We were like, ‘Oh! We’re back!’”

And what better place for a comeback than these hallowed fields of Reading & Leeds. The sense of occasion is certainly not lost on the Norwegian pop sensation, who tells us that she’s been dreaming of this moment since her last triumphant appearance back in 2018.

“It’s always been the one we look forward to,” she tells NME. ” Every time we’ve been here, it’s been great. It’s a really great crowd, they’re here to party and so are we, so it’s great chemistry. I remember the last time, NME filmed us walking on stage and we were just like, ‘We’re fucking rockstars!’”

She admits that “playing Reading & Leeds is like checking in to say, ‘Where are we now and how far have we come?’,” and with a second album looming on the horizon, she has her sights set on becoming the rockstar she’s always wanted to be – and one worthy this festival’s legacy.

“I’m a huge fan of rock music and I think you can hear that in the new music I’ve been making too,” she says. “On my new single ‘Burning Bridges’, you really hear ‘Rock Sigrid’. You’ll definitely see that live energy from me again, I’ve missed it.”

You can sense that in her set (a five star performance from NME, FYI), where she proves a highlight of the weekend, blending pure pop poise with rockstar bravado. She’s gonna smash Wembley Arena on her upcoming UK tour, no doubt about it.

“I’m going to continue to do my thing and be myself,” she replies when asked about her plan for the shows. “We always bring this energy. You can’t buy that energy or the joy that we have for being on stage.”

She tells us that after our interview she’ll try to catch the headline set from Post Malone along with her teenage favourites Two Door Door Cinema Club and The Wombats – and maybe hang out with them in the hope of laying the groundwork for a future collab. We’re in no doubt she’ll be back in a few years and much higher up the bill. She belongs here, and deserves a spot among the Reading rock greats.

Watch our full video interview above, where Sigrid also talks to us about working with Griff and Maisie Peters, why she picked support act Thomas Headon, and why she won’t be sampling the festival cuisine staple of the giant Yorkshire pudding.

Check back at NME all weekend for more reviews, news, interviews, photos and more from Reading & Leeds 2021.