Greta Thunberg's sister distances herself from her 'very different' sibling and reveals she wants to make people feel 'uplifted' while her older relative focuses on campaigning against Israel

Daily Mail​

09-07-2025

Greta Thunberg 's little-known sister has spoken out about her relationship with the climate activist in rare comments after footage of her singing went viral.
Bea Ernman, 19, told Swedish outlet Hänt that she was finding her time in the limelight 'fun' after MailOnline revealed how she had changed her name and was pursuing a career as a performer.
She acknowledged she is often mentioned in the same breath as her famous older sister, 22, who made international headlines last month as she tried to sail to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid in an audacious awareness campaign.
Asked how she feels about the comparisons, she reflected: 'I think it happens to all people who are in the spotlight.
'But there you have such different things you do and you have completely different careers, so in the end it will be very different.'
The young singer was pithy in her assessment of how they were as people: 'Very different.'
Ernman came out of the shadows earlier this summer when she shared clips of herself singing in Stockholm.
She said she has been performing since childhood and at the age of just 19-years-old is now putting the final touches on her first album.
'It's very cocky,' she told Hänt. 'I want people to feel uplifted when they listen to it.'
The album is expected to be released later this year.
Previously known as Beata Thunberg, the performer has started using her mother's maiden name, perhaps in an effort to put some distance between herself and her controversial older sibling, or echo the artistic flair running through the family.
Bea's mother is Malena Ernman, a former Eurovision contestant and mezzo-soprano opera singer. Her father is Swedish film producer and screenwriter, Svante Thunberg.
Bea is following in the footsteps of her successful parents - and sister - while insisting she wants to carve her own path.
She acknowledged the attention can be overwhelming, but said that being an artist is 'about being seen, being on stage and getting attention'.
While the Thunberg sisters have not shied away from building public profiles, Greta has in the past recognised the strain it can take.
In 2019, she acknowledged the toll her work took on her sister when she admitted, 'the one who suffers is my sister'.
'The people who write threats and hate to me do it to the whole family, even to her.
'The difference between me and the people who are left at home is that I am always travelling, inaccessible. People don't know where I am staying, where I sleep at night, where I am. I have no daily life.
'But for my sister at home, who tries to have a daily life … she is much more reachable.'
Bea, now old enough to embark on her own journey, judged that her 'voice was built from pain' as she reflected on a recent performance at Stockholm's Musikaliska - the same concert hall where Albert Einstein received his Nobel Prize over a century ago.
She revealed on Instagram that the path to becoming a star has not been easy. Some in the audience 'looked scared' while others 'covered their ears', she said.
Still a teenager, she has already built up enough resilience to take it on the chin.
'I don't care if people love my artistry or hate it, as long as I make them feel something,' she wrote. 'Not pity. Love or hate. That's the point of being an artist.'
Greta has been supportive and protective of her little sister in the few comments made publicly.
After Bea performed a rendition of her single Bara Du Vill (a Swedish phrase that translates to 'Only if you want') on Swedish TV in 2019, Greta plugged the song on her own Instagram and expressed admiration for 'my super talented sister' on Facebook.
She reiterated her stance months later, while calling for kindness towards Beata.
After her famous speech at the United Nations climate summit made her a household name, Greta - then 16 - told Swedish news outlet Dagens Nyheter how her 'wonderful and strong' sister had to bear the brunt of her activism work.
When she was 13, she performed a rendition of her single Bara Du Vill (a Swedish phrase that translates to 'Only if you want') on Swedish prime-time TV show Bingolotto. Beata is pictured here at a music festival in Stockholm in 2019
Despite the hateful messages that were directed at Beata, she continued supporting Greta by showing up for the older Thunberg's Fridays for Future - or School Strike for Climate - action that turned the spotlight on the Swedish activist in 2018.
In 2020, Beata was cast opposite her mother when she was chosen to play a young Edith Piaf in a musical, Malena depicting the French singer in her later years.
'I have been dancing and singing for as long as I can remember,' Beata reacted to the casting announcement, according to news agency DPA.
'To be able to perform her immortal music is a dream come true,' she said, referring to the iconic songstress Piaf.
Greta has taken a vastly different path, becoming a recognisable face at the front of a number of activist campaigns.
Thunberg shot to fame aged 15, in 2018, when she started skipping school in protest of Sweden's climate policies.
Her School Strike for Climate garnered international attention, building a platform for the teenager to go on pressuring world leaders to do more to mitigate the impacts of climate change.
More recently, Greta has piled criticism on Israel for its conduct in the war with Hamas in Gaza, and in June sailed from Sicily towards the beleaguered Palestinian enclave in an effort to raise awareness and deliver a symbolic amount of aid to the civilian population.