Meet Makisig Akiwumi, a 12-year-old boy from Guildford, England, who has a passion for acting and musicals. He is currently on an international tour with the School of Rock musical, where he plays three roles: James, Zach, and Lawrence. But that’s not all. He also played the role of Bjorn Ulvaeus, one of the members of the legendary pop group ABBA, in the music video for their first ever Christmas single, Little Things released on their 2021 album Voyage. It is the third track on the album. It was released as a single on 3 December 2021.

The song was written by Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus, who contributed music and lyrics respectively. The song is partly based on “Godnattvisa” (“lullaby” or “cradle song”), an instrumental by Benny Anderssons Orkester, released on the album BAO 3 in 2007.

It was announced in December 2021 that all of the band’s royalties earned from the song in the next five years would be donated to UNICEF, the United Nations agency responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide. 

Described as a “gentle reflection on the joy of Christmas morning and family time around this special time of year”, “Little Things” is about a woman who wakes up on Christmas morning and reflects on the joy that the season brings her and her family, and all the ‘little things’ that make Christmas special.

On 3 December 2021, the official music video for the song was published to the band’s YouTube channel. The video features schoolchildren getting together at Christmastime and producing their own ABBA Voyage-inspired concert. The video features an extended version of the song (additional parts before and after the choir), not available on the CD single. The band members themselves do not make a direct appearance in the video, showing only on screen as part of the depicted production effort. 

Makisig was chosen to play Bjorn Ulvaeus because of his energy when performing and his talent for playing the guitar. He had a lot of fun filming the video, which shows him and the other child actors recreating ABBA’s iconic outfits and hairstyles. He also got to meet the real Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny via video link.

Makisig Akiwumi is living his dream, and we are so proud of him. He is an inspiration for all the young aspiring actors and musicians out there. What do you think of his amazing story? Let us know in the comments below.

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