[6] Three years later, her oldest sister Anna-Lisa was involved in a fatal traffic collision; her car was crushed by a tanker truck while she was travelling to purchase a dress for her engagement party.

[11] She formed punk group Strul (English: Hassle) in 1978 with then-boyfriend Stefan Dernbrant—the band consisted of an extensive and fractious lineup of musicians, the majority of whom would leave after a single performance.

Due to the success of the festival, Fredriksson opted to continue performing under the Strul name alongside the band's other longest-serving member, guitarist Martin Sternhufvud.

The release was timed to coincide with the 1981 version of Strulfestivalen, which would be the last; three months later, the group permanently disbanded following a "disastrous" performance at the Pop Around the Clock festival, which was broadcast nationally on Swedish radio.

This close relationship between the two bands resulted in Fredriksson performing vocals on Gyllene Tider's 1981 song "Ingenting av vad du behöver" (English: "Nothing of What You Need").

[10] Believing Fredriksson to be "too talented to be hiding behind keyboards", Gessle invited her to audition for Gyllene Tider's producer Lars-Göran "Lasse" Lindbom.

[15] She performed duet vocals on "Så nära nu" (English: "So Near Now"), the lead single from the Lasse Lindbom Band's 1982 album Romantisk Blackout.

Following its completion in the autumn of 1983,[15] Fredriksson recorded backing vocals for Gyllene Tider's debut English album The Heartland Café, released in Sweden under the band's original name, and in EP format in North America under the name Roxette—derived from the Dr. Feelgood song of the same name.

[10] On Gessle's insistence, Fredriksson agreed to embark on a solo career in late 1983,[17] recording her debut album from December 1983 to June 1984, with Lindbom as co-writer and producer.

[18] "Ännu doftar kärlek" (English: "Still the Scent of Love") was issued as her debut single in May 1984, becoming a top twenty hit on Sverigetopplistan, Sweden's national record chart.

[19] The album was promoted by a three-month double bill concert tour, featuring Fredriksson performing as a solo artist alongside Lindbom's eponymous band.

[21] This cover band appeared on several Swedish television programmes, and consisted of Fredriksson and Lindbom performing alongside Per Gessle and Mats Persson.

EMI Sweden's managing director, Rolf Nygren, suggested Gessle translate one of his Swedish compositions to English and record it as a duet with Fredriksson.

[27] Their debut album, Pearls of Passion, was a major success upon release in October 1986, peaking at number two and eventually selling over 200,000 copies,[25] but it failed to chart internationally.

[10] It peaked at number one and sold over 50,000 copies within a month of release,[19][22] and was certified platinum by the Swedish Recording Industry Association for shipments in excess of 100,000 units.

[29] Both the title track and "Bara för en dag" (English: "Just for a Day") were top ten hits on Svensktoppen,[30][31] and she promoted the album with a sold-out concert tour.

[32] Two weeks later, EMI released Den flygande holländaren (The Flying Dutchman), a tribute album to musician Cornelis Vreeswijk, who died the previous year.

[26] The following month, the track unexpectedly entered the Billboard Hot 100,[35] despite the duo not having a recording contract in the US; the local branch of EMI had previously rejected Roxette as "unsuitable for the American market.

[55] She took part in this residency every summer between 1995 and 2002,[10] performing vocals on several of Bolyos' original compositions and numerous cover versions, including "The Good Life".

[56] Her fifth solo album, I en tid som vår (In a Time Like Ours), was recorded by Fredriksson and Bolyos at their home studio in Djursholm between February and September 1996.

[19][26] Her duet with Anni-Frid Lyngstad, "Alla mina bästa år" ("All My Best Years") – from Frida's 1996 album Djupa andetag (Deep Breaths) – was released as a single in February 1997.

She was more involved in its composition and production than on previous Roxette releases, recording numerous demos at her Djursholm studio and singing lead vocals on ten of the album's fourteen songs.

[10] Prior to the album's release, the duo signed a new recording contract with their longterm label EMI, which saw Fredriksson obtain the copyright for her entire solo discography.

[57] The process of recording the album was reputedly difficult and confrontational, with Fredriksson later heavily criticising co-producer Michael Ilbert: "I ended up under his thumb.

[67] After waiting several weeks for the effects of the fracture and resulting concussion to subside, she underwent successful surgery to remove the tumour, which was malignant, and she endured months of chemotherapy and radiation treatment.

[19] Despite being unable to read or write, Fredriksson rediscovered her love of drawing during her illness, and began using charcoal to create artwork as another form of therapy.

[84] The compilation contained two previously unreleased recordings,[85] one of which, "Ordet är farväl" ("The Word Is Goodbye"), was based on a lyric Py Bäckman wrote for Fredriksson's 1984 album Het vind.

[20] "Där du andas" ("Where You Breathe") was released in August 2008 as the theme song to the film Arn – The Kingdom at Road's End,[86] and became Fredriksson's first number one single in her home country.

[102] Roxette's tenth studio album, Good Karma, was released in June 2016,[103] and was due to be promoted with a European tour celebrating the duo's 30th anniversary.

[107] Roxette issued a compilation album of outtakes titled Bag of Trix on 11 December 2020, containing several previously unreleased demos composed by Fredriksson.