Kristian Gidlund
Kristian Gidlund performing with Sugarplum Fairy in April 2007
Born
Kristian Olof Erik Gidlund

(1983-09-21)21 September 1983
Borlänge, Sweden
Died17 September 2013(2013-09-17) (aged 29)
Sweden
NationalitySwedish
Occupation(s)Musician, author, journalist

Kristian Olof Erik Gidlund (21 September 1983 – 17 September 2013) was a Swedish musician and author. He played drums in the rock band Sugarplum Fairy.[1] He hosted Sommar i P1 on Swedish radio and released one book. In 2011 Gidlund was diagnosed with stomach cancer, and died from the disease in 2013 four days short of his 30th birthday.

Biography

Gidlund was born and raised in Borlänge and started the rock band Sugarplum Fairy along with two friends, brothers Victor Norén and Carl Norén, in the late 1990s.[1] The band had its big breakthrough with the song "Sweet Jackie" in 2004, a hit which Gidlund wrote and composed.[2] In 2009 the band took a break and Gidlund started to freelance as a journalist at the same time studying multimedia at Södertörns Högskola.[3] During his studies he resided in Hägersten outside of Stockholm.[4]

In 2011 Gidlund was diagnosed with stomach cancer.[5] After that diagnosis he started a blog called "I kroppen min" (In this body of mine) which got eight million visitors.[6] He went through several chemotherapy sessions but his cancer continued to advance.[7] In 2013, his first book I kroppen min – resan mot livets slut och alltings början (en: Inside my body – the travel towards the end of life and start of everything) partly including large excerpts from his blog.[3][8] Both the blog and the book received wide attention in the media, and he was also invited to talk about his illness and his views on death on several talk shows.[9][10]

In June 2013 photographer Emma Svensson organized a photo exhibition about Gidlund.[11] During the same month Gidlund was host of the radio show Sommar i P1.[12] Gidlund's broadcast of Sommar i P1 was one of the five most listened to during the summer radio show's run.[13]

Death

In September 2013 Gidlund's condition worsened and on 17 September he died of cancer, a few days before his 30th birthday.[14][15]

Bibliography

References

  1. ^ a b DT.se: Kristian Gidlund har avlidit (in Swedish)
  2. ^ SvD Kultur: Kärlek gav Sugarplum Fairy listetta (in Swedish)
  3. ^ a b SvD Kultur: ”Man orkar inte gå runt och dö” (in Swedish)
  4. ^ Slutet närmar sig för Kristian Gidlund
  5. ^ Aftonbladet: ’Jag förstår inte varför jag måste utkämpa det här’ – Musikern Kristian Gidlund, 29, är svårt sjuk i cancer och vet att han snart ska dö (in Swedish)
  6. ^ SvD Kultur: Kristian Gidlund saknad av många (in Swedish)
  7. ^ Dagen: Han lever livet med en dödsdom – Kristian Gidlund: ”I kroppen min. Resan mot livets slut och alltings början” Archived 21 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine (in Swedish)
  8. ^ DT.se: Kristian Gidlund: "Måste leva upp till mina ord" (in Swedish)
  9. ^ GP.se: Kristian Gidlund tar avsked (in Swedish)
  10. ^ Sveriges Radio: Kristian Gidlund är inte rädd för att dö, han är rädd för det som kommer precis före (in Swedish)
  11. ^ Sveriges Radio: Fotoutställning om Kristian Gidlund (in Swedish)
  12. ^ Sveriges Radio: Kristian Gidlund – Musiker, journalist och bloggare som i sitt Sommarprogram berättar om resan mot livets slut och alltings början. (in Swedish)
  13. ^ Sveriges Radio: Rekordlyssning för P1 då Sommar i P1 sänds (in Swedish)
  14. ^ Torbjörn Ek. "Kristian Gidlund död – blev 29 år" (in Swedish). Aftonbladet.se. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  15. ^ Amanda Johansson-Murie. "Kristian Gidlund har avlidit" (in Swedish). DN.SE. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
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