The Sounds formed in 1998 in Helsingborg, by childhood friends guitarist and vocalist Felix Rodriguez and bassist Johan Bengtsson, who later invited drummer Fredrik Nilsson on board.

Maja Ivarsson met the group in high school when the guitarist Felix Rodriguez ended up in the same class.

They have been to the "Southern Finland triangle" (Turku, Tampere, and Helsinki) many times, but their tour in the fall of 2006 showcased them in additional inland and coastal towns.

The widely advertised film gave an enormous amount of publicity to Ivarsson and her band, especially in America[citation needed].

In March 2011, Ivarsson signed a promotion campaign by American hair care company Sebastian Professional.

She also collaborated with Felix Cartal on the song "Tonight" from his 2012 album Different Faces and with Andreas Kleerup performing co-vocals on the EP As If We Never Won.

[10] In the early years of the Sounds, Ivarsson was in a long-term relationship with fellow band member Fredrik Nilsson.

[11] In June 2013, during a Swedish radio show entitled Sommar i P1, Ivarsson revealed that she once had been emotionally and physically abused as well as raped by a former male friend of her family.