Girl in Red is nothing if not refreshingly direct. The Norwegian singer-songwriter’s breakthrough track of 2018 was I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend, a tortured plea for something more from a platonic relationship. “I don’t wanna be your friend, I wanna kiss your lips,” she sang lustfully.
Another early song called Girls spelled things out even more clearly. “I’m not talking about boys, I’m talking about girls,” she specified. It wasn’t long before “do you listen to Girl in Red” became a code to discreetly establish sexual orientation. Marie Ulven’s merch stall still sells cute T-shirts asking the same question.
