Pen Gutt

Pen Gutt is the soundtrack, from the Norwegian hip-hop rapper of the same name, for an upcoming movie directed by Håvard Sandvik

You think of rappers and more often than not you think of swagger; a certain bravado and spectacle that oozes confidence and self-belief both in their personalities and their music. Rarely do you encounter someone who was a “complete nerd”, cripplingly shy and grew up in a nature-immersed town in Norway whilst going to Christian summer camp each year. However, this is one of many reasons that makes 24 year-old Pen Gutt such an original an artist.

As a result of an upbringing atypical to most rappers, Pen Gutt’s music is similarly atypical – existing in its own unique world in terms of tone, groove, flow and production. This Norwegian language music is even something the creator struggles to define himself. “I usually say it's a mixture of rap and folk music,” he says. “But the thing about genres is that as an artist I find it claustrophobic to work in a set of rules.”