Rocknytt’s interview series ”Before Sweden Rock 2026” continues. Rocknytt’s Diane Webb chat with Nikki Hill about her music and upcoming performance at Sweden Rock Festival.
Before a single note is played at Sweden Rock Festival, who is Nikki Hill in that moment, what version of yourself are you bringing to that stage?
Nikki Hill: In that moment, I’m a lover of music just like the people attending, ready to give them the best show possible. I’m bringing my joy, my swagger, and maximum ACTION!
You’ve played Sweden many times, but this will be your first time at Sweden Rock Festival. What feels different about stepping onto a stage of that scale?
It’s an honor! Sweden has been so kind and supportive to me and my band over the years. An invite to Sweden Rock feels like an extension of that.
Sweden Rock is known for deeply passionate, loyal audiences. What does it mean to meet a crowd like that at this point in your career?
I’m always very excited to have the opportunity to get my music and live show in the ears, eyes, and hearts of people that otherwise might not experience it. I’ve been touring for over 10 years, and love that there are still chances to be ’discovered’ and gain an audience.
Festival sets demand a different kind of intensity, shorter, faster, more immediate. Do you approach that environment strategically, or do you trust instinct to take over?
Honestly, our live show is basically a festival level performance whether we are in front of 100 or 10,000. The only difference is the decision on which songs I have to cut! The rest is instinct and adrenaline!
For someone discovering you for the first time at Sweden Rock, what do you want them to feel in those first few minutes?
I want them to feel the heart, the toughness, the humor, the fun – I just want people to FEEL.
Your performances carry a raw, almost unfiltered energy. In an era of highly polished production, what keeps you committed to that kind of honesty in your sound?
Thank you! It’s so natural to me, I don’t think I could polish myself up if I even tried. I create art for the release, and I perform for the freedom, so that’s what I have to give, no need to dress it up because people need to know what it really looks like. In the many lives I lived before becoming a musician, I have been so lucky to see so many amazing live shows and be inspired by that same unfiltered energy. I’m just keeping that vibe going in my own way.
Your music draws from gospel, soul, and early rock ’n’ roll traditions, but it never feels like revivalism. How do you keep those influences feeling present and alive rather than nostalgic?
Thank you! I love listening to my record collection, but I don’t feel a need to repeat those records. Especially as a Black American woman from the south, I think it’s important for people to hear my own stories from my point of view in the current time. Nostalgia can create a certain kind of box that I personally don’t want to be stuck in and often gets placed on people that look like me with no choice. That part of the business doesn’t resonate with me.
There’s a real sense of conviction in how you deliver a song. Where does that emotional intensity come from in the moment?
Performing is so cathartic for me. I ball up all my rage, stress, and sadness and let that go. The stage is the closest place I get to a true feeling of freedom.
Is there a song in your current set that feels especially powerful to perform right now? What makes it hit differently?
I have quite a few songs that really express my disdain for the struggles we experience in the USA like ”Poisoning the Well” or ”Tell the Next World”. Of course, most are written in a way that you can dance to them, but that doesn’t change the message. Singing those songs never gets old, but now it feels like people are hearing what I’m saying even more than when I first started performing them. Our struggles at home are nothing new, but now no one can look away, and the entire world is watching.
As an independent artist who’s built a career on the road, what have been the biggest lessons in sustaining both your creativity and your life outside of music?
I’m still learning that lesson! I started up my career in music at a later age which really helps me be able to hold on to an identity beyond me just being an artist. I make sure that I explore other interests and just remain curious for life and learning. I definitely remind myself all the time to ’touch grass’ (that might be a very American saying, I’m not sure!) [touch grass is slang saying that means to go outside, get offline, and reconnect with the real world]
Your musical partnership with Matt Hill, both your bandmate and your husband, has always been central to your sound. How has that relationship evolved creatively over time?
It has actually been incredible the last few years! I taught myself how to play bass guitar with the intention to help me with songwriting and just to challenge my brain, and that has evolved into me playing bass for Matt’s project, Heartbreak Hill. It is so much fun to approach playing music in a different way! The full-time touring and playing together has been really intense, but we are so thankful to be able to do what we do. Right now, we are just riding the wave and approaching everything organically, but I can’t wait to see where it all goes. We are practically telepathic at this point – it feels good to have the grounding of a partner that’s in it all the way with you, and also someone that shares the bit of delusion it takes to do what we do!
Is there a story or direction you feel you haven’t fully explored in your songwriting yet, but want to?
Absolutely! I don’t know if I can name exactly what that story or direction is, but yes, I want my songwriting to keep evolving, keep improving, and keep following an honest path.
After Sweden Rock Festival, where do you feel pulled creatively; are you writing, experimenting, or redefining anything about your sound?
For a moment, I was doing way more free writing than songwriting, just to release all the waves of emotions. I’m excited to be coming out of that – I have so many melodies lately pouring out so I’m just remaining open to that.
We moved to Memphis recently, and there is so much creativity and originality flowing through the city, it’s impossible to not be inspired. Not only that, but everyone is so supportive and engaging. I can’t wait to see what happens with that.
If someone walks away from your set at Sweden Rock and carries one feeling or message with them long after the festival ends, what do you hope that is?
Respect yourself, respect each other, and respect me! I can’t be boxed in, but you won’t forget that I’m a rocker!
Thank you again for the interview and I wish you the best performance at Sweden Rock! See you there.
Thank you so much! I hope you have the best time!
Nikki Hill performs on Saturday, June 6 at 20:15 on the Pistonhead Stage.
Sweden Rock Festival 2026 line-up består av:
Abandon Agony, Adept, Alestorm, ALLT, AMH, Ambush, Ashes of Billy, Babymetal, Black Label Society, Blue Benders, Blood Incantation, Bronze, Bring Me The Horizon, Candlemass, Clawfinger, Coroner, Crashdïet, Dirkschneider, Down, Dundertåget med vänner, Eclipse, Ego Kill Talent, Elvenking, Evergrey, Floor Jansen, Foreigner, From North, Gatecreeper, Gehennah, Grave, Hard-Ons, Hällas, Hellbutcher, Helloween, Hostilia, Iron Maiden, Jared James Nichols, Jayler, Jelusick, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts, John 5, Kanonenfieber, KLPS, Korslagda, Lakeview, Lion’s Share, LÝSIS, Majestica, Magnus Uggla – One Night Set, Masterplan, Michael Monroe, Nikki Hill, Occrasy, Only Human, Overkill, Palaye Royale, Robin McAuley, Rockklassiker Allstars, Roy Khan, S.O.R.M, Savatage, Saxon, Self Deception, Seven Spires, Sha-Boom, Sister, Skyclad, Social Distortion, Static-X, Strevellna, Ström, Syracusæ, Tailgunner, The Crown, The Flower Kings, The Gathering, The Halo Effect, The Hellacopters, The Offspring, The Poodles, The Striders, Three Days Grace, Thrown, Tom Morello, Treat, Trivium, Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats, Unpeople, Venom, Volbeat, Vreid, Wilmer X, Yngwie Malmsteen, Zan/Cody.