Asking the important questions

Hey there, beloved High Five Club members and prospective members,

It's your friends at the Reykjavík Grapevine (Opens in a new window), saying and bringing you the latest reads from our mag and news from Iceland.

FROM THE MAG

Everyone has faced challenges over the course of the global pandemic brought on by COVID-19, but it may have hit kids the worst. Two Krakkaveldi journalists wanted to learn more about the state of youth mental health in Iceland and what resources there are for kids who may be struggling. Here’s what they learned (Opens in a new window).

Kids can do amazing things if given the opportunity. One program, The Upbeat, aims to foster the musical creativity of young artists by giving them the chance to work alongside professional musicians and ultimately perform their own compositions on Iceland’s biggest stage. Jóhannes Bjarkason spoke with The Upbeat project manager Elfa Lilja Gísladóttir about the initiative. Here’s what you need to know (Opens in a new window).

Other weekend reading from the Grapevine

• Bríet has taken Iceland by storm over the past couple years. Now she’s shifting her songwriting into English — is global domination next? Find out (Opens in a new window).

• Jói went to the annual Battle of the Bands. Read his takeaway from the event (Opens in a new window).

• We shared the video with you last week, now you can read all about two young journalists’ visit to the presidential compound. Why not do it right now? (Opens in a new window)

• We asked a couple 8-year olds what they would do with all the money in the world. Here’s what they said (Opens in a new window).

WATCH THIS

EXTRA! EXTRA! 

• Up To A Decade To Breed Scrapie-Free Sheep (Opens in a new window)

• Icelandic Fish Beer Conquers Global Audience (Opens in a new window)

• Iceland Touring Association In Favour Of Closing Hiking Trails (Opens in a new window)

LISTEN UP

We sometimes feel like a broken record, repeating that it’s been another banner week for Icelandic music, but we can’t help it — there’s just so much good stuff coming out consistently. In this week’s New Music Roundup, we’re bringing you MSEA’s nightmare-pop, Sunna Margrét’s dreamy and dreadful new track, an EP from the Berlin-based popper Anton Líni, and the much anticipated album Museum by JFDR — and more! Here’s what we think of all this new music (Opens in a new window). 

Have you listened to our 66 Degrees of Sound podcast yet? Catch up on the entire series (so far) right here (Opens in a new window) and stream our new episode right here (Opens in a new window).

That's it from us this week. As always, thanks for your support.

<3 Team Grapevine

If you were a member of our High Five Club, this post would have included an exclusive early access link to view our newest YouTube video content, plus sweet discount codes for the Grapevine store and travel portal. Want that?