Robyn: Soundtrack of my life

Smarter than the average pop artist, Robyn has been making music for more than half her life. Born Robin Carlsson in Stockholm, the 31-year-old was a starlet in Sweden, signing a record deal aged 16 and releasing her debut album a couple of years later. No puppet, in a bid for more control over her music she then set up her own label, and the electro-pop of 2005's Robyn immediately marked her out as one of the decade's few innovators in an era of reality TV-led conformity. "My role models were my parents, who had an independent theatre group," she says. "I watched them perform, but also do their own book-keeping. When I was 23, 24, I connected the dots between that and the music business."

Robyn is responsible for not one, but two of 2010's best records, Body Talk Pt 1 and this month's Body Talk Pt 2. When she takes time out from the studio to discuss some of the key records in her life, it's clear that she remains a pop kid at heart. "You learn from all your favourite records," she says. "The songs you sing along to, they're like your teachers."

THE ALBUM THAT REMINDS ME OF CHILDHOOD

My mum played this over and over when I was very little. I rediscovered it a while ago and it evoked really strong feelings, almost like going back to a house that I used to live in, or seeing a painting that I did when I was young. The feeling was so strong it was almost physical. This is the album with "O Superman" on it, and it's mind-blowing that that track was a hit in Britain. It's an artsy record but it's also very simple, with lots of repetition – I like repetition – and it's funky, but in a modest way. My mum played it a lot and my dad always listened to Hounds of Love by Kate Bush, which I went back to as well. It's her best album, and quite funky but repetitive too.

THE RECORD THAT TAUGHT ME POP COULD HAVE PERSONALITY

I was about 10 years old when I heard this. I was crazily impressed by her attitude, as well as the fact that she was half Swedish but not like other Swedish girls. My friends and I tried to dress like her at the time – we tried to, because we were only 10. "Buffalo Stance" and "Manchild" are amazing pop songs, and they represent a time in the early 90s when genres and styles were mixing in unexpected ways, especially in Europe. What was really going on was club music like Technotronic, Snap! and the KLF, these surprising electronic pop records. They were all hits but were also this weird mix of hip-hop and techno. Neneh Cherry's Raw Like Sushi has been an influence on me ever since; it shows that pop music can have a personal style, it doesn't need to be generic, or not mean anything.

MY TEENAGE YEARS

I was up to no good, like every teenager, but I didn't get into trouble or anything – I was just hanging out at parties and concerts in Stockholm. I was quite curious. I knew I wanted to make music, so I started to look for artists I could relate to. Hip-hop was like my punk, it was how I separated myself from my parents – although I grew up in a family that let me do what I wanted, so it wasn't really about rebelling against them, more figuring out my own identity. With hip-hop, it was the storytelling – I think Biggie is the best rapper – plus it made me want to dance. I rap on my song "Konichiwa Bitches", and I wouldn't have even done that song without having listened to Biggie in the first place, but I can't rap about guns, so I rap about other things.

GETTING STARTED IN THE MUSIC BUSINESS

This is such a laidback, sexy song. It has the same attitude as hardcore male rap, but it's done by girls, and it's not cheesy. I liked TLC because they were tough girls and I thought that was cool. There were other great female R&B artists around at the same time too, such as Brandy or Aaliyah. I was signed when I was 16 and this record reminds me of the period after that. I was making records for major labels, having fun, but I was already starting to think about getting out, or at least changing the way I approached it. I enjoyed being in America, meeting artists who I'd listened to for years, but I realised that the business is not the same as the music. That was super disappointing.

THE ALBUM THAT REMINDS ME OF STRIKING OUT ON MY OWN:-D

I've always listened to Prince. The first album of his I bought was the soundtrack to Batman but this is his best, although I heard it late as it's one that's not always talked about. I started listening to it when I made my first album on my own record company. At the time I felt like I was starting all over again and this album kept me going. It's from early in his career and you can tell he that didn't have that much money, so instead of doing things like string arrangements, he's using synthesisers. It's a very raw and a very brave album – and it has that amazing cover, where he looks like a flasher. It has a song about incest on it too, "Sister", where he's basically in love with his sister.