After a series of frustrating setbacks, Annie finally releases her much anticipated second album, Don’t Stop.

Sure, Lady Gaga’s fine and all, but Norwegian pop star Annie has a firm clutch on our bubblegum heart. Her songs are contagious and uplifting, she name-checks Bjorn Torske, and she has a wicked sense of humor. She’s just released her second album, Don’t Stop, after a couple years of label purgatory. Here, Annie cracks us up by talking about arson, abandoning orphans, and making the unusual leap from Island Records to Smalltown Supersound—all in a deceptively innocent-sounding Scandinavian accent.