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FLOOR JANSEN announces debut solo album, 'Paragon'

13-12-2022

Floor Jansen, best known as the lead vocalist of the Finnish symphonic metal band NIGHTWISH, will release her debut solo album, “Paragon”, on March 24, 2023. The LP showcases the Dutch-born singer’s impressive vocal range and powerful voice on a diverse collection of pop-infused tracks and emotional ballads influenced by the sounds of her career.

“Paragon” includes the following tracks:
01. My Paragon
02. Daydream
03. Invincible
04. Hope
05. Come Full Circle
06. Storm
07. Me Without You
08. The Calm
09. Armoured Wings
10. Fire

Jansen said: “To renew yourself and take leaps into the unknown makes you grow. To age is a gift not everyone gets. I am a fortunate woman who got to make an album I never knew I could make. One that even defines me, where I am on my path. I have reached my PARAGON! I am so proud of this work! And grateful for all the amazing people in this beautiful life that helped me get here!”

With its mix of influences and powerful vocal performances, “Paragon” is an album that will appeal to fans of pop music and metal alike. It’s the perfect addition to any music collection, and a must-have for fans of Floor Jansen and NIGHTWISH.

“Paragon” will be released digitally and physically on CD, vinyl, and a limited-edition deluxe box set. The album will be available on all major streaming platforms and at music retailers worldwide.

Following the release, Jansen will embark on a tour of The Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria in April and May of 2023.

Fans can expect to hear more details and possibly some sneak previews of the album in the coming months.

Floor has already released three singles from “Paragon”: “Me Without You”, “Storm” and “Fire”.

JANSEN recently revealed she is undergoing treatment after a successful operation fro breast cancer. The treatment will continue in January.

When Floor Jansen revealed that she was “cancer free” on November 18th, she said in a statement:

“Great news! I am cancer free. The surgery took everything cancerous out and it hasn’t spread! I’ll get local radiation therapy in February to make sure everything stays out.

“I’m getting my energy back after the surgery and feel a huge relief to know it was successful! I’m not back to a 100% but I have no doubt the shows will give me the power push I need to rock with all of you on the upcoming European tour.

“Thank you for your amazing support and well wishes”.

Jansen revealed her diagnosis in October. At the time, she wrote: “A letter to you, Life comes in waves, with ups and downs. I have had the joy of riding many highs, and I have shared these with you through social media and the many many shows worldwide throughout the many years of my career.

“But now a new wave hit me. Not a good one. I have breast cancer. It was diagnosed a little over 2 weeks ago and I will have surgery tomorrow to remove the tumor. My prognosis is very good!!! It seems to be a non-aggressive cancer, which seems to not have spread. I will keep my breast. And I will be cancer free after this surgery, plus a local radiation treatment that will take place three months after this surgery, hopefully. We will know more after the surgery to see if this positive prognosis stands.

“The word cancer is a shocker. All that you found important in life before this diagnosis changes radically within minutes. Now I just want to be healthy again. I want to see my daughter grow into a woman; I want to live! And the scariest part of this diagnosis is that I thought I was healthy! I didn’t feel the cancer, I didn’t know it was there until I, as a 40+ woman, went to a standard mammogram checkup. Something many countries offer, for free even for the lucky ones. Had I not gone there, the tumor would have gone undetected. In a year from now this could have grown much bigger. The thought of that makes me share this story with you. A mammogram is lifesaving! It’s uncomfortable and you might think that you won’t have something in your breasts anyway but GO! And for the men reading this: remind your wife, girlfriend, mother, sister to go and get checked. Even without the luxury I as a western woman experience with free mammogram checkups: GO! Luckily, there are many organizations that offer information about self-detection if you do not have access or funds for a mammogram.
If I might inspire you to take good care of yourself, then something good will come out of this cancer diagnosis.

“If all goes as planned, I will be up and running in time for the European tour with NIGHTWISH, that will start on the 20th of November! And I am optimistic since my prognosis is good!

“I promise to take good care of myself.

“I will be off the grid for a while to focus on myself.”

Besides her work for finish gsymphonic metal band NIGHTWISH, she also has a successfull solo career, which was ignited by her participation in the Dutch t show De Beste Zangers (the best singers) in which she gave an interpretation of the ‘Phantom Of The Opera’, alongside operatic singer Henk Poort.

Four months ago, Floor was asked in an interview with FaceCulture if she is planning to eventually release a full-length solo album. She said: “There are a lot more songs ready. There’s not an album ready, but also because it would make no sense to have one. Due to the pandemic, there’s an entire NIGHTWISH still not done and still yet to be done; as it looks like, we actually are gonna do that now. So before that, I cannot say, ‘Okay, I come [out] with a solo album.’ ‘Cause then you also would like to do some more [solo] shows and do the right promotion and all of that, so there’s no time for that — which is a luxury problem on itself. But it’s fun. And that’s also a big difference with this pop music thing — you can release singles. It’s not an album-based world; it’s completely different.”

Jansen went on to call “Fire” “a statement and “the kick-off of everything. And from there I’ll keep releasing singles. And the aim is to release the album in ’23,” she explained before clarifying that there are a lot of variables involved that could affect the timeline of the LP’s arrival. “But the ambition is there. And everything is geared up to do that.”

Jansen is best known as the frontwoman in the multi-million selling and internationally successful symphonic metal band NIGHTWISH. As part of the band, Jansen has landed two number one albums in Finland, and Top Five albums in Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

Born in the Netherlands, Jansen joined her first band, one of the world’s first symphonic metal bands, AFTER FOREVER, when she was only 16 years old. The group went on to release five albums from 2000 to 2007, before they broke up in 2009.

Jansen‘s next band, REVAMP, released two albums in 2010 and 2013, before she joined NIGHTWISH as a full-time member. NIGHTWISH‘s first album with Jansen as the lead singer was 2015’s “Endless Forms Most Beautiful”, which landed in Top 10s around the world. This was followed by 2020’s “Human. :II: Nature.” , which was also an international success.

Jansen has toured extensively with the band and appeared on three of NIGHTWISH‘s live albums “Showtime, Storytime”, “Vehicle Of Spirit” and “Decades: Live In Buenos Aires”.

In 2019, Jansen participated in the popular Dutch TV show “Beste Zangers” where she scored a big hit with “Phantom Of The Opera” together with Henk Poort. She was recognized with a Dutch Popprijs award — a prestigious accolade for artists that has made important contributions to Dutch music. In the same year, her first solo tour sold out in less than 24 hours.

Jansen performed live with NIGHTWISH for the first time on October 1, 2012 at Showbox Sodo in Seattle, Washington following the abrupt departure of the band’s lead singer of five years, Anette Olzon. Jansen officially joined NIGHTWISH in 2013.

Photo by Florencia Giuliana Fotografía

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