Ylvis


Ylvis is a Norwegian comedy duo consisting of brothers Vegard and Bård Ylvisåker. They debuted as professional variety artists in 2000 and have since appeared in several countries in variety shows, comedy concerts, television shows, radio shows and music videos. They hosted the Norwegian talk show I Kveld med YLVIS . Their song and music video "The Fox ", written and filmed for the talk show, went viral on YouTube in September 2013. The video currently has over 947million views as of 2020. They released an album called , a compilation of ten older singles. In 2018 the brothers released . “The Ylvis brothers collected headlining stories from Norway and presented them as short, musical documentaries”

Early life and debut

Vegard Urheim and Bård Urheim Ylvisåker were born to parents from the Sogn district of Western Norway, the older two of three brothers. The younger brother is Bjarte Urheim. Their early childhood years were spent in Angola and Mozambique, where their father was an engineer during the civil wars there. After a few years in Africa, the family moved back to Bergen, where the brothers received a musical upbringing and were trained in classical instruments. Vegard played the viola and Bård the violin. However, both quit during their youth, Vegard instead focusing on guitar, voice, piano, double bass and comedy, and Bård on guitar, voice, comedy and acrobatics such as aerial silk.
While attending high school at Fana gymnas, they were heavily involved in school and variety shows as well as the school choir. During a performance, they were spotted by impresario Peter Brandt, who orchestrated their debut as professional variety artists at Ole Bull Teater in Bergen in 2000. Their debut show was called "Ylvis en kabaret" and was followed in 2003 by "Ylvis en konsert".

2006–09

In 2006, the brothers signed a management contract with the live production company Stageway. They also debuted as hosts on national broadcasting with the radio show O-fag on NRK Radio.
In January 2007, they appeared onstage at Ole Bull Theater with a new variety show, Ylvis III. They toured with the show for almost three years, the last show being played in Odda in western Norway in December 2009. The show was also recorded and published on DVD. Also in 2007, they debuted as hosts on national television with the show Norges herligste, a version of the Swedish show 100 höjdare. This was released on DVD as well as broadcast on Swedish TV.
In 2008 they released a second series of the radio show O-fag and also a new TV show based on their Ylvis møter veggen stage show on TVNorge, a game show concept inspired by the "Brain Wall", a feature in the Japanese game show Tonneruzu no Minasan no Okage deshita on Fuji TV.
This was followed up by another game show, Hvem kan slå Ylvis in 2009, based on the German show Schlag den Raab. Members of the public were invited to try to beat the brothers at various tasks, with a reward of up to one million Norwegian kroner.

2009–present

In 2010, they hosted Nordens herligste, a pan-Nordic version of the show. In 2011 they reprised their variety stage show with "Ylvis 4", premiering at the Ole Bull Theater with the entire run sold out before opening night. That year, the brothers also launched a comedy talkshow I kveld med Ylvis on TVNorge, with Calle Hellevang-Larsen from comedy trio Raske Menn as a sidekick.
Upon being renewed for a second season, the brothers created a production company, Concorde TV, in order to retain rights and creative control of their work. The second series was broadcast in 2012, with David Batra replacing Hellevang-Larsen in the role of sidekick. In the Fall of 2013, Hellevang-Larsen returned for the third series of I kveld med Ylvis. Despite technical difficulties during the broadcast, the first episode took the top ratings spot.
A number of comedy and parody music videos, either originally featured on I kveld med Ylvis or used to promote the show, have been released onto YouTube and other streaming media. "The Fox" and "Stonehenge" have also been released as singles. "The Fox", produced by StarGate and M4SONIC, which was released on 3 September 2013 to promote the upcoming third series of I kveld med Ylvis, went viral on YouTube and received 31 million views in its first two weeks. It was the most watched video on YouTube worldwide in 2013, and as of 2020, the video has over 947million views.
Ylvis received offers for interviews, concerts, and major label record contracts from several countries following the release of "The Fox". Their first performance abroad was on The Ellen DeGeneres Show in the United States, where they appeared on 20 September 2013. They also made an appearance at the iHeartRadio Music Festival in Las Vegas the next day. On 9 October 2013, Jimmy Fallon brought them to his late night show to perform live. On 11 October 2013, they performed on The Today Show outside the studios. On 15 November 2013 they performed on BBC Children in Need where they were joined on stage by Jedward, The Cheeky Girls and Bucks Fizz. On 22 November 2013 Ylvis attended Mnet Asian Music Awards for the first time, and received the International Favorite Artist award.
On 12 December 2013, they appeared on Live! with Kelly and Michael to promote their new children's book titled "What Does the Fox Say?" and later to perform. The book What Does the Fox Say? debuted as no. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list.
On 15 October 2014 Ylvis released on iTunes a single titled "I Will Never Be A Star", which was recorded by their younger brother, Bjarte Ylvisåker. On 19 November 2015 Ylvis released their first album on iTunes, which is a collection of some of their popular YouTube hits. On 5 January 2016, Ylvis revealed the music video and song "a capella" on I kveld med YLVIS on TVNorge. "a capella" parodies a cappella groups like Pentatonix.
On 1 November 2017, it was revealed that the brothers would start a new television show entitled Stories from Norway. The show, which blends the mockumentary genre with musical numbers, premiered on 19 February 2018 on TVNorge.
In 2019, both members appeared on the first season of Kongen Befaler.

Filmography

Stage

Discography

Studio albums

Singles

DVD releases

YearAwardCategoryProjectRecipientResult
2001KomiprisenBest EnsembleYlvis
2007KomiprisenThe Year's Funniest Ylvis IIIYlvis
2008GullrutenPeople's prizeBård and Vegard Ylvisåker
2011KomiprisenThe Year's NumbersYlvis 4Ylvis
2011KomiprisenThe Year's Funniest Ylvis 4Ylvis
2012GullrutenTV Name Of The YearBård and Vegard Ylvisåker
2012GullrutenBest EntertainmentI Kveld Med YlvisYlvis
2012GullrutenBest New ProgrammeI Kveld Med YlvisYlvis
2012GullrutenBest Male PresenterBård Ylvisåker
2012KomiprisenBest Performance - TV/FilmI Kveld Med YlvisYlvis
2012KomiprisenThe Year's FunniestI Kveld Med YlvisYlvis
2013KomiprisenBest male artist, TV/Film/NetBård Ylvisåker
2013Mnet Asian Music AwardsInternational Favorite ArtistYlvis
2014World Music AwardsWorld's Best Song"The Fox "Ylvis
2014World Music AwardsWorld's Best Video"The Fox "Ylvis
2014World Music AwardsWorld's Best GroupYlvis
2014SpellemannprisenHit Of The Year"The Fox "Ylvis
2014GullrutenTV Moment Of The Year"The Fox "Ylvis
2014GullrutenBest EventLive: Helkveld Med YlvisYlvis
2014GullrutenAudience AwardYlvis
2014KomiprisenThe Year's Male TV ComedianBård Ylvisåker
2014Radio Disney Music AwardsStuck In Our Heads – Catchiest New Song"The Fox "Ylvis
2014MTV Millennial AwardsViral Video Of The Year"The Fox "Ylvis
2015Berlin Video Music AwardsBest Animation"Ytterst På Tissen"Julian Nazario Vargas, Animaskin
2015GullrutenBest Entertainment ProgramI kveld med Ylvis LIVEYlvis
2015GullrutenBest Male TV HostI kveld med Ylvis LIVEBård Ylvisåker
2015GullrutenAudience AwardVegard Ylvisåker, Bård Ylvisåker
2015GullrutenTV Moment Of The YearYlvis and Charter-Svein - I kveld med Ylvis Live!Ylvis and Charter-Svein
2015Nordic Music Video AwardsPost Production"Ytterst På Tissen"Ylvis
2015Nordic Music Video AwardsBest Artist Performance"I Will Never Be A Star"Bjarte Ylvisåker and Ole Martin Hafsmo
2015Nordic Music Video AwardsMusic Video Of The Year"Intolerant"Ylvis
2015Nordic Music Video AwardsGAFFA Audience Award"Intolerant"Harald Zwart
2016KomiprisenHumor Program Of The YearI Kveld Med Ylvis LIVEYlvis
2016KomiprisenMale TV Comedian Of The YearI Kveld Med Ylvis LIVEBård Ylvisåker, Vegard Ylvisåker
2016KomiprisenHumor Moment Of The YearI Kveld Med Ylvis LIVEYlvis
2016KomiprisenThe Year's FunniestI Kveld Med Ylvis LIVEYlvis