Swedish singer-songwriter Zara Larsson may be just 20-years-old, but the 'Lush Life' pop star is already one of the biggest stars in the world. Zara Larsson, who is preparing to release her second international album, spoke to Hits Radio about the upcoming record and the inspiration behind brand new track 'Ruin My Life'.
When asked what was behind the inspiration for the song, Zara admitted, "I was debating with myself whether it's good for me as an artist, especially a woman, to talk about a relationship that was not great - but you want back."
She continued, "I don't want to promote that, but at the same time I want to speak my 'truth'. I've been in a really bad relationship that's not good for me or the other person and we're just really bad for each other, but after you break up you're like, 'I want nothing more than to get back with this person, I know it's going to ruin my life and break my heart but I still want it'."
Zara added that she thought the track was "quite relatable," and that her friends had all "been there at some point." Although she "debated" with herself over the song, she admitted she wanted to release it because "I just think it's a beautiful and relatable song."
However, Zara went on to say that it wouldn't "necessarily have to be about a relationship," saying that it could be about a toxic friendship where both parties were a bad influence on each other.
Swipe through to see the biggest and best collaborations of the year so far...
Biggest collabs of 2018
1 of 27Camila Cabello and Young Thug
Former Fifth Harmony singer Camila Cabello dominated the charts with her massive collaboration with Young Thug on the catchy single 'Havana'.
2 of 27Dua Lipa and Calvin Harris
BRIT Award winner Dua Lipa teamed up with Scottish DJ Calvin Harris to create their amazing summer track 'One Kiss'.
3 of 27Cardi B and Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars enlisted the help of American rapper Cardi B to re-release his super upbeat single 'Finesse'.
4 of 27Rita Ora with Cardi B, Bebe Rexha and Charlie XCX
Rita Ora teamed up with Cardi B, Bebe Rexha and Charlie XCX for her single 'Girls' in May.
5 of 27Liam Payne and Rita Ora
Former One Direction singer Liam Payne joined forces with Rita Ora to record the Fifty Shade Freed single 'For You'.
6 of 27Paloma Faith and Sigala
Paloma Faith lent her vocals to Sigala's amazing single 'Lullaby'.
7 of 27Justin Timberlake and Chris Stapleton
Justin Timberlake made his return to music in 2018 and teamed up with American singer-songwriter Chris Stapleton for the massive single 'Say Something'.
8 of 27Anne-Marie and Marshmello
British singer Anne-Marie and American music producer Marshmello worked together to create the incredible 'Friends'.
9 of 27Jess Glynne and Rudimental
Jess Glynne teamed up with Rudimental on the single 'These Days' to help her become the first British female solo artist to ever score six UK Number 1 singles.
10 of 27Calum Scott and Leona Lewis
Former Britain's Got Talent star Calum Scott and winner of The X Factor Leona Lewis teamed up on the stunning single 'You Are The Reason'.
11 of 27Camila Cabello and Pharrell
Camila Cabello and Pharrell have teamed up for 'Sangria Wine'. This new song didn't make it onto Camila's self-titled debut solo album, but it has now been released as a single.
12 of 27Maroon 5 and Cardi B
Maroon 5 and Cardi B teamed up for 'Girls Like You'. The music video stars a number of celebrities including Camila Cabello, Millie Bobby Brown from Stranger Things, Ellen DeGeneres, Jennifer Lopez, Rita Ora and Adam Levine's wife Behati Prinsloo and their daughter Dusty Rose.The photo shows the lead singer from Maroon 5, Adam Levine and Cardi B.
13 of 27Nicki Minaj ft. Ariana Grande
Superstar rapper Nicki Minaj has teamed up with Ariana Grande for another great collaboration, 'Bed'. 'Bed' is the follow up to Nicki's 'Chun-Li' and features on her fourth studio album, 'Queen'.
14 of 27Sigala - featuring Fuse ODG, Sean Paul and Kent Jones
Sigala's song is quite the collaboration, it fuses together inspiration from each of the collaborators. Sigala described the song as an, "Amazing mix of cultures with Sean Paul from Jamaica, Fuse ODG from Ghana and Kent Jones from America."
15 of 27Little Mix and Cheat Codes
This track is Little Mix's first song to be released in 2018 and quite different from their usual sound.
16 of 27Jax Jones featuring Mabel
'Ring Ring' is Jax Jones's first song since 2017, the music video includes graphics of a spaceman interspersed with a bag of sweets called Jax Jones, in the style of a Haribo bag.
17 of 27David Guetta and Anne-Marie
David Guetta and Anne-Marie team up for the first time to release 'Don't Leave Me Alone'.
18 of 27DJ Khaled, Justin Bieber, Chance The Rapper and Quavo
DJ Khaled, Justin Bieber, Chance The Rapper and Quavo have teamed up to release 'No Brainer'.
19 of 27Calvin Harris and Sam Smith
Calvin Harris and Sam Smith teamed up on 'Promises'.
20 of 27Bastille and Marshmello
Bastille and Marshmello have teamed up for their new single 'Happier'. Lead singer Dan (pictured) tweeted saying, 'Last year we wrote a song called "Happier" which we thought would be great as a collaboration. We had a lot of fun getting to work on it with Marshmello who managed to find some joy in the melancholy…'.
21 of 27Sigala, Ella Eyre, Meghan Trainor and French Montana
British DJ Sigala has dropped another fantastic single, this time teaming up with some big names, including Ella Eyre, Meghan Trainor and French Montana!
22 of 27Olly Murs and Snoop Dogg
Olly Murs and Snoop Dogg have teamed up for the fantastic single 'Moves'. They dropped the song the lyric video on the 27th September.
23 of 27Little Mix and Nicki Minaj
The Little Mix girls teamed up with American rapper Nicki Minaj for their amazing hit single 'Woman Like Me'.
24 of 27Liam Payne, Jonas Blue and Lennon Stella
Liam, Jonas and Lennon teamed up on the hit 'Polaroid' in 2018. The single was a massive hit with fans with its summery vibe.
25 of 27James Arthur and Anne-Marie
The amazing James Arthur and Anne-Marie teamed up to release their own rendition of 'Rewrite The Stars' from The Greatest Showman.
26 of 27Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper
Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper teamed up together when they both starred in 2018 film A Star Is Born. Their duet 'Shallow' took the charts by storm, with many fans dubbing it their 'favourite duet' of the year.
27 of 27Ellie Goulding and Diplo
After taking time off, Ellie Goulding returned in 2018 with 'Close To Me', featuring Diplo.
Thankfully, Zara revealed that she's in a "very happy and healthy relationship at the moment," but confessed that it's much harder to write songs about being happy.
She said, "It can just become cheesy so easily, but I do have some songs that are pure love songs on this upcoming record. I feel like most of my songs actually have some sort of sexual undertone, and that's quite easy to write about.
"Love songs in general are quite relatable for most people."
Zara also handed out some advice for people who were stuck in the rut of wanting to get back in a volatile relationship. "Someone said to imagine you've killed the person," she said, "And you've got to delete all the evidence that you ever knew them - imagine if the police are going to go through your phone.
"Don't save the pictures and the messages, why do you need that? I think it's really hard to move on, I would just say that time does its thing, but you will meet someone who is worthy of you."
NOW WATCH: Zara Larsson opens up about what inspired her to write 'Ruin My Life'
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