Seven years ago, on April 20, 2018, the world lost Tim Bergling, known globally as Avicii. His passing left a void in the music world, but his influence endures through his groundbreaking tracks, the memories of his performances, and the emotional depth he brought to electronic dance music.
A Personal Introduction to Avicii’s Music
I first encountered Avicii’s music when Levels played at a friend’s gathering. I didn’t even know what EDM was at the time. I just knew that something about that loop made everything around me feel lighter. The way it kept building felt like an invitation into a new world, one that I didn’t fully understand but wanted to be part of. That song didn’t just stick in my head. It changed how I heard music. It was the beginning of everything for me.
In 2016, I had the opportunity to see Avicii perform live at Road to Ultra Thailand. I still think about that night. The crowd didn’t need fireworks or distractions. When he played The Nights, people put their phones away and actually lived in the moment. There was a group of strangers hugging behind me. Some were shouting the lyrics. Others had tears in their eyes. “One day you’ll leave this world behind, so live a life you will remember.” It didn’t feel like a line from a dance song. It felt like a reminder to wake up and be present.
Bridging Musical Worlds
Avicii made electronic music feel personal. That was his gift. Wake Me Up was released in 2013 and reached number one in over twenty countries. It sold more than 267,000 copies in the UK during its first week and became the most streamed track in Spotify’s history at the time. The track featured Aloe Blacc on vocals and was co-written with Mike Einziger from Incubus. It was electronic, but it didn’t sound like anything else out at the time. “All this time I was finding myself, and I didn’t know I was lost.” That line found its way into Instagram captions, yearbook quotes, and people’s real lives.
Hey Brother felt more like a country or folk song. It had a message about family and sacrifice that reached far beyond the dance floor. The Days and The Nights became twin tracks in a way. One was about the memories you make, and the other was about why those memories matter. “These are the nights that never die” became something people wrote on posters, festival banners, and graduation cards. His music didn’t just play in clubs. It followed people through growing pains, through breakups, through change.
A Soundtrack for Every Emotion
Avicii’s songs were tied to specific feelings in a way that a lot of EDM at the time was not.
- Levels felt like discovering something new and not being afraid of where it might take you.
- Waiting for Love sounded like someone trying to hold on to hope after losing it for a while. “Monday left me broken, Tuesday I was through with hoping” hit different when life was actually throwing you around.
- Fade Into Darkness gave space to people who were dealing with the quiet stuff. The moments when you feel unsure of who you are or where you’re headed.
- The Nights helped people remember that joy could still exist in the middle of everything else.
Back then in our twenties, we danced to these songs without thinking too much about the lyrics. They were part of the background. But now in our thirties, the words feel more specific. They feel like they were written for moments that haven’t even happened yet.
Enduring Legacy
Avicii’s influence on music is still being felt today. Artists like Kygo, Alan Walker, Martin Garrix, and even pop acts like Zara Larsson and Billie Eilish have pointed to Avicii’s emotional honesty and musical structure as something that shaped how they make songs. He helped take EDM out of the underground and onto the radio without losing any heart. That shift changed the course of what pop and dance music could be.
After his death, the Tim Bergling Foundation was launched by his family. The foundation focuses on mental health awareness, suicide prevention, and removing the stigma around seeking help. His story pushed the industry to talk more openly about burnout, touring pressure, and the need for balance. He left behind not just an archive of songs, but a conversation that needed to happen.
In 2025, a compilation album titled Avicii Forever was announced. It features twenty of his most well-loved tracks and includes a previously unreleased song called Let’s Ride Away, which he co-wrote with Kacey Musgraves. That track is expected to come out later this year, and fans are already anticipating how it might feel to hear his voice and production again after all this time.
Remembering Tim Bergling
Avicii‘s music continues to inspire and connect people. He didn’t just produce songs that filled dance floors. He created tracks that made people feel seen. Tracks that sounded good when you were celebrating but also stayed with you when things got quiet.
As we remember him today, we’re not just looking back at a discography. We’re remembering the way a song could hit you when you least expected it. How one line could stay in your head for years. How a beat could make you feel like yourself again.
Tim Bergling may have left us in 2018, but his music still speaks for him, and a lot of us are still listening.
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