In a world where even the mildest band dynamic gets turned into a myth of backstage bust-ups and ego-driven warfare, it was only a matter of time before the long-rumored feud between ABBA’s two vocal powerhouses got put under the microscope again.
But this time, it’s Agnetha Fältskog herself putting the decades-long whisper campaign to rest.
Speaking to Lithub, the Swedish icon addressed one of the most persistent rumors in pop history—that she and Anni-Frid Lyngstad were locked in a silent, simmering competition for vocal dominance during their chart-topping reign.
“Several people who interviewed me here have asked if there was rivalry between me and Frida,” she said, before swiftly dismissing the suggestion with a level-headed rebuttal. “But there was none of that. On the contrary, we helped and supported each other all the time, especially on tour.”
The cold, calculated machinations of a manufactured feud? Or the perfectly normal relationship between two professional women navigating global stardom while enduring public scrutiny and personal heartbreak?
Fältskog continued, “If one of us had a cold, the other would step up and pull a heavier load in terms of singing. We always covered for each other.”
That’s not the rhetoric of a diva jostling for position. That’s what mutual respect sounds like.
The storylines we’ve been sold—of dueling dresses, stolen spotlights, and barely disguised resentment—collapse under the weight of actual testimony. And Fältskog isn’t the only one to try and bury the myth. Back in 2009, Anni-Frid herself told Aftonbladet, “A lot has been written about how Agnetha and I fought and quarreled with each other. There is absolutely no truth in that. Of course we competed, but to good effect.”
Professional rivalry is not personal animosity. And that, really, is the nuance too many tabloids have been allergic to for far too long.
