If you didn't already know, Tobias Forge, founder, frontman, and everything else for the band Ghost, is Swedish. So is the metal band Opeth. This is all important to know before what comes next.
The Polar Music Prize is awarded annually to one contemporary musical artist and one classical artist, and is a Swedish international music award that started in 1989. In other words, while the winner can be from anywhere, many of the musical artists who perform during the award ceremony are Swedish.
One of the recipients in 2025 was the band Queen. Brian May and Roger Taylor attended the honors, as did Adam Lambert, who has long filled in for the band's former vocalist, the late Freddie Mercury. Lambert has a fantastic voice, but he isn't Mercury. Few people that have walked the earth have that kind of talent.
Watch Ghost's Tobias Forge perform Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody"
This is why, when a performer chooses to take on covering a Queen song, they might try their best not to sound exactly like Mercury, but still have a worthy performance. This was what Forge was tasked with when he sang the iconic "Bohemian Rhapsody" during the Polar Music Prize.
He did have help from Opeth guitarist Fredrik Åkesson, who has collaborated with Forge and several projects. The natural interplay enhanced their cover, as did the voices of the Ericson Chamber Choir. Somehow, all the elements sounded quite good, and May and Taylor seemed appreciative.
To be sure, Forge will never sing like Mercury, but he is also self-aware enough to know his limits and not try to overdo his vocals. He still sounds good, but if one watches the video and expects Mercury, that isn't going to happen, and it shouldn't.
Besides Forge and Åkesson, other well-known performers included Erik Grönwall covering "Stone Cold Crazy," while Lambert performed "Who Wants to Live Forever" and "Another One Bites the Dust."
Past winners of the Polar Music Prize, started by Stig Anderson, former manager of ABBA, include Metallica, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Elton John, Paul McCartney, Joni Mitchell, and Bruce Springsteen. In other words, the Prize knows how to rock.