Article in Norwegian published by Tv2.no 03.10.2024
By Line Barka and Marie Myklebostad
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HAS MOVED HOME: Alexander Rybak has moved home to Norway after what he refers to as harassment and manipulation over time. Photo: Heiko Junge
Alexander Rybak (38) made the decision some time ago to move home to Norway, after four years in the USA.
Rybak himself announced this in a video on Tiktok in September.
– It’s not worth it anymore. This summer I said goodbye to my house in the mountains of LA and moved back to my family where it is safe. Maybe one day I will tell the whole story, maybe not. Right now I just want to take back my life and enjoy safety and freedom, he says in the video.
In heated legal dispute against “stalker”
The background for the decision is said to be an extensive conflict with what Rybak refers to as a persistent stalker. In the video on Tiktok, he makes several strong claims against the woman, against whom he has been in a heated legal battle for the past year.
When TV 2 met Rybak on the red carpet during the premiere of the musical The Bodyguard in September, he was somewhat tight-lipped:
– What I can say is that there is a lot that is legal in America, which would never be legal here in Norway, so I feel much safer here at home.
TV 2 has been given access to court documents from Los Angeles. Here it appears that accusations have been thrown back and forth ever since Rybak took the case to court in June 2023.
Newspaper Subjekt mentioned the court documents first, in an article published in July.
Was granted a restraining order
Rybak initially applied to have a restraining order imposed on the woman, which he was granted in June last year.
The woman has since tried several times to have the restraining order lifted, without success.
Last autumn, however, Rybak tried to have the woman declared an “annoying plaintiff” through the legal system. According to TV 2, this is due to her repeated attempts to appeal the visiting ban.
After an extensive protest presented by the woman, the court decided on 3 November last year to reject Rybak’s wish.
What should have made the cup run over for Rybak is that he claims the woman has also harassed several people in his close work and social circle in recent times.
On Tiktok, he claims that the woman should also have spread rumors about people who are close to him.
– These are the people she hurts the most. If you receive any kind of rumors about them, please do your best to ignore them, he writes in a text accompanying the video.
TV 2 has been in contact with the woman, who claims that all the claims he makes in the post are false, and says that he has no evidence for any of the claims.
She refers to the court’s decision on 3 November last year, and warns of legal action if he spreads undocumented claims about her.
Word against word
Rybak has claimed to the court that it all started with the woman becoming an “extreme fan” after he won the Eurovision Song Contest.
The woman, for her part, believes that she has known Rybak for a number of years. She says in court documents that she has co-produced several of the artist’s projects, booked him for Emmy-awarded TV programs, and she has considered herself a close friend of Rybak for several years.
The woman has attached documentation in the form of SMS exchanges and videos to the court as her proof of this very fact.
She also emphasizes to TV 2 that she has worked with Rybak.
On Thursday, TV 2 contacted Rybak with several questions about the case:
– It’s nice that you mention this, but I don’t need to say anything more apart from the video, he says.
BIG MOMENT: Alexander Rybak became a well-known name internationally, after he took a superior victory in the Eurovision Song Contest in 2009 with the song “Fairytale”. Photo: Ivan Sekretarev / AP / NTB
Claims in social media
Rybak used his social media channels last autumn to refer to the “stalker”.
– I’ve got a new “stalker” in LA. She has been harassing me every day for a long time, he claimed in the video.
In the video, he also made a number of allegations about the woman’s behavior towards him.
In the wake of this, she is said to have taken to her own social media channels to fight back, where she makes claims in return against the Norwegian artist. TV 2 has seen the videos, which have been reproduced on Tiktok.
Moved to the USA to study
It was in 2020 that the artist moved to the USA to take a master’s degree in film music composition.
When TV 2 met Rybak during a theater premiere in Norway last autumn, he told about the aforementioned trial.
– What was supposed to be a lot of music became paperwork and a lawsuit against “stalkers”, he said at the time.
By all accounts, everyday life in LA was far from what Rybak had hoped for.
Now he has decided to move home as a result of this.
– Police reports and restraining orders do not seem to have any effect on people like her. For two years I have tried to avoid her and ignore her, he writes in a text associated with the video on Tiktok.
In the video, he also thanks his fans for the support he has received, especially over the past year.
TV 2 is not aware of whether further legal steps have been taken in the case after November last year.