Stargate

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Stargate is a Norwegian production and songwriting duo consisting of Tor Erik Hermansen and Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, both born in 1972 and now based in Los Angeles. It began in 1996 in Trondheim as a trio, with Hallgeir Rustan as well. Hermansen was then working as a talent scout for Warner Music, Eriksen had a studio, and Rustan was a mechanical engineer. One of their first successes was the album Curious by the Norwegian R&B singer Noora Noor. For the British market they used the name Stargate.

Music and breakthrough

Their first international success came with S Club 7 and the song S Club Party in 1999, followed by The Way to Your Love by Hear'Say in 2001. They also wrote and produced for Blue, Mis-Teeq and Atomic Kitten. Their method was to remix American hip hop and R&B and add layers of melody to it that suited European radio. When Hermansen and Eriksen decided to go to America, Rustan stayed in Norway. Their breakthrough in the United States came in 2006 with So Sick by Ne-Yo, which went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100.

Influence

After that they made a string of worldwide hits, including Irreplaceable by Beyoncé and Firework by Katy Perry. They worked a great deal with Rihanna, on songs such as Unfaithful, Don't Stop the Music, Rude Boy, Only Girl (In the World), What's My Name?, S&M and Diamonds. In 2013 they made Almost Home for Mariah Carey. The music is smooth, melodic pop with R&B rhythms, made for the radio. Stargate shows how much of the sound of pop in the 2000s and 2010s was created in the studios of producers.

Listening

Mentioned in other articles

• Irreplaceable SongIt was made by the Norwegian production duo Stargate, with singer Ne-Yo as lyricist.