Maria Mena

• Name — Maria Mena • Birth Name — Maria Viktoria Mena • Born — 19 February 1986 • Birthplace — Oslo, Norway • Genre — Pop, folk, rock • Occupation — Singer • Years Active — 2002–present • Label — Sony Music Norway, Columbia • Website — mariamena.no

Maria Viktoria Mena was born to a Norwegian mother and Charles Mena, a Nicaraguan-American drummer of Afro-Nicaraguan descent. There was a common misconception that her mother is a playwright, but Mena debunked this in an interview. Both Maria and her brother, Tony, are named after characters from Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story. Her father was born in Bluefields, Nicaragua where he lived until he was 10, at which point he and his mother, Mena's paternal grandmother, moved to New York. After moving to Norway in 1986, he played in several bands in Oslo, which influenced Mena to write and record her own music. When Mena was nine years old, her parents divorced. As a teenager, she began to battle depression and various eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia nervosa, as spoken of in her lyrics, interviews, concerts, and social media. Mena has spoken of battling depression and PTSD as an adult, and seeking help. Mena cared for her younger brother Tony for many years. When Mena was 13 years old, she moved to live with her father. She sang and wrote lyrics as a form of self-soothing. "My Lullaby", a song from Mena's diary, expresses her pain from her parents' divorce. Mena's father contacted acquaintances in the music industry to record a demo. Presenting his daughter's demo to several record companies, Sony Music signed Mena to their label aged 16.

In 2002, she released her debut single "Fragile (Free)" in Norway; however, it did not chart there. "My Lullaby" was released as the second single and the song reached number 5 on the Norwegian Singles Chart. It received heavy rotation on NRK P1, P3, P4, Radio 1, and Radio Oslo. The young singer quickly gained fans and soon earned her first platinum record. After the success of "My Lullaby", she released her debut album, Another Phase, in Norway which reached number 6 on the Norwegian Albums Chart. Mena made an appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman to promote her first international album, White Turns Blue, which debuted at the top position on the Billboard Top Heatseekers chart a week later and at number 102 on the Billboard 200. She made a breakthrough into the worldwide singles charts that year with "You're the Only One", a single successful in multiple countries. The song was her only single to appear on a Billboard chart, making No. 25 on the U.S. Top 40 Mainstream. "You're the Only One" peaked at No. 30 on the Dutch Top 40 and No. 19 on the Dutch Mega Single Top 100. Two months earlier, in March 2004, Mena had released her second album in Norway. Mellow. Less successful than her 2002 debut, it still managed to peak at No. 7 in Norway. The second single from both albums was "Just a Little Bit", which did not chart anywhere. 2005 saw the release of Apparently Unaffected in Norway and several other European countries, fronted by singles "Miss You Love" and "Just Hold Me". A significant success in Norway, the album has earned her three Spellemann nominations: Best Female Artist, Best Hit, and Best Music Video. In the Netherlands, the album was released in June 2006 and charted at No. 82. It slowly climbed the chart to reach its peak position in its 27th week at No. 11, as "Just Hold Me" was getting airplay again. "Just Hold Me" was released in May 2006, but then did not chart in the official Dutch Top 40, but did chart in the country's physical singles chart, the Mega Single Top 100, at No. 27. In October 2006, the song started getting heavy airplay again and this time it reached the official Dutch Top 40 and peaked at No. 26. In the Mega Single Top 100, it peaked at No. 7 in the beginning of November 2006. Mena performed at sold-out concerts in Utrecht and Amsterdam, following the success of "Just Hold Me". The album was at No. 48 at the Dutch year-end chart, outselling major artists such as Pink's I'm Not Dead, Nelly Furtado's Loose, and Beyoncé Knowles' B'Day. "Miss You Love" was released as the album's second single in the Netherlands and reached No. 61 on the Mega Singles Top 100. • Illustration — Maria Mena 2008 On 7 July 2007, she performed at the German leg of Live Earth in Hamburg.

Having worked on her three first studio albums with Norwegian producer Arvid Solvang, Mena started collaborating with Martin Sjølie in early 2008 on what would become her fourth studio album, Cause and Effect. The album's first single, "Belly Up" had its radio premiere mid-June 2008 on Norwegian radio. Cause and Effect was released on 17 September in Norway. The first international single was "All This Time". The album was internationally released on 26 September 2008. This album garnered her a Spellemann for Best Female Artist. Mena's song "Sorry" was featured on the third season of US So You Think You Can Dance and "What's Another Day" was featured during the fourth season. She released "All This Time" in the UK on 11 April 2010. In 2011 Mena recorded her version of "Mitt lille land" (My Little Country) by Ole Paus as part of a project by the Norwegian TV channel TV2. On 23 July, the day after the Norway terrorist attacks and after requests from her Norwegian audience, Mena uploaded her version of the song to the streaming site SoundCloud. It quickly became an anthem in memory of the victims of the attacks. She contributed to the album Mitt lille land, performing one of two versions of the title track (the other was performed by Ole Paus). As of 2011 Mena had sold a total of 700,000 copies of her albums, and half of those copies had been sold in Norway. • Illustration — Maria Mena performing in 013 Tilburg, 10 February 2014 in The Netherlands during her Weapon in Mind Tour Her fifth studio album, Viktoria, was released on 23 September 2011 and was produced by Martin Sjølie. Her sixth album, Weapon in Mind, was released in 2013, becoming her first album to reach number one in Norway. Even though all three singles of the album failed to chart inside top 20 Norway Singles Chart, "Fuck You" and "I Always Liked That" became two of her best selling singles in Norway, both certified 2× Platinum.

Mena released the single "I Don't Wanna See You with Her" on 6 November 2015. Her seventh studio album, Growing Pains, was released on 4 December 2015. In March 2020, Mena announced a new album (sometimes recognized as an EP), They Never Leave Their Wives. The album was released on 23 October 2020. Mena released three singles from the album, "Not OK", "Lies (They Never Leave Their Wives)", and "You Live and You Learn". In October 2020, Mena announced that she will release a new album in March 2021. In April 2021 Mena made a new announcement, saying she will postpone the release of her new material until she can play concerts again. The concert venues in Norway have been closed for longer periods during the COVID-19 pandemic. She described the upcoming album as a sequel to They Never Leave Their Wives, containing songs about a woman who is on her own and then finds love. In August 2022, Mena was cast in the second season of the Viaplay series Furia. Mena also auditioned for a role in the Norwegian TV series Etterglød (Afterglow), where she was not cast but offered to make a song for the soundtrack. That song is "It Was Love", which was released on 23 September 2022.

• Title — Album details — Chart positions — Certifications • NOR — AUT — GER — NL — POL — SWI • Another Phase — * 1st studio album * Released: 22 April 2002 — 6 — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: Platinum • Mellow — * 2nd studio album * Released: 1 March 2004 — 7 — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: Gold • Apparently Unaffected — * 3rd studio album * Released: 14 November 2005 — 6 — 40 — 22 — 11 — — — 56 — * BVMI: Gold * NVPI: Platinum • Cause and Effect — * 4th studio album * Released: 15 September 2008 — 4 — 23 — 20 — 8 — 43 — 13 — * IFPI NOR: Platinum * BVMI: Gold * IFPI SWI: Gold * NVPI: Gold • Viktoria — * 5th studio album * Released: 23 September 2011 — 2 — 29 — 18 — 17 — — — 13 — * IFPI NOR: Gold • Weapon in Mind — * 6th studio album * Released: 23 September 2013 — 1 — — — 59 — 14 — — — 30 • Growing Pains — * 7th studio album * Released: 4 December 2015 — 6 — — — — — 31 — — — 75 • And Then Came You — * 8th studio album * Released: 15 September 2023 — 5 — — — — — — — — — —

• Title — Album details — Chart positions • US • White Turns Blue — * International debut album * Released: 20 July 2004 — 102

• Title — EP details — Chart positions • NOR • They Never Leave Their Wives — * Released: 23 October 2020 — 12

• Year — Title — Chart positions — Certification — Album • NOR — AUT — EU — GER — NL 40 — NL 100 — NZ — SWI — UK — US • 2002 — "Fragile (Free)" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Another Phase & White Turns Blue • "My Lullaby" — 5 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: Gold • 2004 — "You're the Only One" — 8 — — — 43 — — — 30 — 19 — 35 — — — — — 86 — Mellow & White Turns Blue • "Just a Little Bit" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • 2006 — "Miss You Love" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Apparently Unaffected • "Just Hold Me" — 2 — 4 — 52 — 14 — 26 — 7 — — — 5 — 158 — — — *IFPI SWI: Gold *BVMI: Gold • "Miss You Love" (re-release) 1 — — — — — 147 — 73 — — — 61 — — — — — — — — • "Our Battles" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — 81 — — — — • 2008 — "Nevermind Me" 2 — — — — — — — 84 — — — 76 — — — — — — — — • "Belly Up" 3 — 4 — — — 75 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Cause and Effect • "All This Time" — 7 — 7 — 13 — 15 — 6 — 7 — — — 14 — — — — — * BVMI: Gold * IFPI SWI: Gold • 2009 — "I'm in Love" — — — — — — — — — — — 54 — — — — — — — — • "I Was Made for Lovin' You" — — — 44 — — — 91 — — — — — — — 20 — — — — • 2010 — "Home for Christmas" — 1 — — — 56 — — — — — 98 — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: 5× Platinum — Hjem Til Jul soundtrack • 2011 — "This Too Shall Pass" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Viktoria • "Homeless" — — — — — — — — — — — 69 — — — 65 — — — — • 2012 — "Viktoria" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • 2013 — "Fuck You" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: 2× Platinum — Weapon in Mind • "I Always Liked That" — — — — — 188 — — — — — 100 — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: 2× Platinum • 2014 — "Til Alle Tider" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Bauta – En hyllest til Bjørn Eidsvåg • 2015 — "I Don't Wanna See You with Her" — 20 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: 2× Platinum — Growing Pains • 2016 — "Leaving You" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • 2020 — "Not OK" — 37 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — * IFPI NOR: Gold — They Never Leave Their Wives • "Lies (They Never Leave Their Wives)" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • "You Live and You Learn" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • "Jula Hjemme" (featuring Trygve Skaug) — 16 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Non-album single • 2021 — "I Need a Man" (Hver gang vi møtes) — 2 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — *IFPI NOR: Platinum — Stian Staysmans dag (Sesong 11) • "Ghettoparasitt" (Hver gang vi møtes) — 5 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Hkeems dag (Sesong 11) • "Stein på stein" (Hver gang vi møtes) — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Arne Hurlens dag (Sesong 11) • "Goin' Insane" (Hver gang vi møtes) — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Agnete Sabas dag (Sesong 11) • "Når en skumring blir blå" (Hver gang vi møtes) — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Hanne Kroghs dag (Sesong 11) • "Det går over" (Hver gang vi møtes) — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Trygve Skaugs dag (Sesong 11) • "Speil" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • 2022 — "It Was Love" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — TBA • "Alt du vil ha" (with Isah) — 2 — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — Non-album single • 2023 — "Not Worth It" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — And Then Came You • "Try Again Tomorrow" (featuring Darling West) — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • "Easy Love" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — • "Till The Water Runs Clear" — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —

• Year — Title — Chart positions — Album • NOR — GER • 2005 — "Everytime" (Whimsical featuring Maria Mena) — — — — — The Glow • 2009 — "Wide Awake" (Sasha featuring Maria Mena) — — — 68 — Lila, Lila soundtrack • "Konfliktsky" (Jaa9 & OnklP featuring Maria Mena) — — — — — Sellout! • 2012 — "Fåkke fly bort" (Madcon featuring Maria Mena) — — — — — Contakt • 2013 — "Colder" (LidoLido featuring Maria Mena and Bun B) — — — — — Battle Poetry • 2020 — "Narnia" (Aiba featuring Maria Mena) — — — — — TBA • 2021 — "Den fineste Chevy'n" (Halva Priset featuring Maria Mena) — 1 — — — TBA

• Year — Title — Album • 2002 — "Blame It on Me" — Another Phase • "Sleep to Dream" • 2004 — "Patience" — Mellow • 2011 — "Habits" (featuring Mads Langer) 4 — Viktoria • "A Stranger to Me" • 2014 — "Til alle tider" — Bauta – En hyllest til Bjørn Eidsvåg • 2020 — "Mitt Lille Land" — Non-album single • 2021 — "You Broke Me" — They Never Leave Their Wives • "Ghettoparasitt" (featuring Hkeem and Sisi) — Non-album single Notes • 1: The single was officially released in the Netherlands, Germany, Spain and Austria in 2007. • 2: The single was officially released in the Netherlands in 2009. • 3: "Belly Up" was only released in Norway. • 4: "Habits" was only released in the Netherlands.

Maria Mena is recorded as musician, singer, singer-songwriter and voice actor. Recorded at birth as Maria Viktoria Mena. The authorities additionally record the heading Maria Viktoria Mena.