Søren Bregendal is a Danish superstar who became internationally known for his role as Erik in one of my favorite shows, “Emily in Paris.”

When I learned that Søren was not only an actor, but also an astrologer, I immediately wanted to know more about this unconventional combination. I approached him and asked for an interview. Søren was kind, direct, open, and friendly right from the start, and he said yes.

The deeper I dived into learning about him, the more fascinated I was. It’s not every day that you meet a successful singer, songwriter, actor, and astrologer, who meditates twice a day, devotes his life to support young people in need, and promotes gardening as a leisure activity, right?

Søren has always dreamt big. As a child, he played in an elite youth soccer team and had ambitions of becoming a famous soccer player. But at age 15, a music producer heard him singing in the locker rooms and took him for an audition.

“I stood in front of a microphone for the first time in my life with my headphones on and I started singing. It was a Kairos moment when everything felt just right. I felt at home.”

He then became a singer and a songwriter for two successful Danish bands. He also released a solo album with the interesting name “Life is Simple but not Easy.”

His first band, C21, released albums in 14 countries, and won gold records in some of them. His second band, Lighthouse X, represented Denmark in the Eurovision competition. But success was not the whole purpose of the band.

“Pop music is one of my greatest passions. It affects billions of people. I wanted to use this force to create social transformation and bring people into a conversation about life.”

Another agenda Søren had was to offer alternate ways for musicians to distribute their music, without needing to sign record deals. He formed a partnership with a Scandinavian telecommunication company that wanted to create social change. The company financed Lighthouse X.

Along with playing Erik in “Emily in Paris,” Søren has starred in 11 movies, one musical, and one TV show with almost 150 episodes. Some of these movies and shows were extremely popular and achieved awards and recognition. He also produced and co-directed the two most recent movies he acted in.

Another thing Søren is passionate about is his NGO activity. He especially works with causes that serve young people and kids who suffer from mental illness and other hardships and difficulties.

He got involved with NGOs when he was 21 years old. His band, C21, gave him a platform and he quickly realized he wanted to use it to cast light on some of the topics he was struggling with himself.

When Søren was six years old, he had what I call an early awakening experience. He was expelled from a private school. As a result, he developed anxiety and OCD that he dealt with for almost fourteen years.

“I was lucky,” he says. “I had a gifted and competent family that could help me. I also got counseling from psychologist and psychiatrist. Many kids don’t have these resources. When I got the opportunity to make a change, I got involved.”

When I ask him if he had any time to sleep, he laughs, “What I haven’t done is form a family.” He has been single for 17 years, and just recently had a soulful relationship of two years that turned into a beautiful friendship.

“Living on my own gave me a lot of freedom and time. I’ve spent that time on my projects and my own spiritual practice. It’s very important for me to have a lot of silence throughout the day. I meditate twice a day and practice yoga every morning.”

Not having a family is a conscious choice for him. “I did not want to put myself in a situation where I was torn between two such important purposes. I did not want to have a partner or children that I could not dedicate my time to.”

This statement confuses me as most of his songs and acting roles revolve around romantic love. “I am a very passionate guy. I am very conscious about my sexuality. But I don’t see romance as something limited to one partner or one relationship. I don’t feel comfortable in this box,” he explained.

“Being romantic is not about the one and only. It’s a mindset. It does not have to be translated into something sexual. It can be a look, an energy, a transaction between two people where you feel that spark,” he continued.

For Søren, giving another person the feeling that they are being seen, loved, and desired is a type of generosity, and generosity is the most profitable thing in the world, so why hold it back? But he also emphasizes that he is not here to convince anyone to live according to his lifestyle, or any other way. “I’m always up for an open-hearted, open-minded conversation about our different choices in life.”

Through his gardening experience, he learned that nature is extremely diverse. To him, the garden of life is a play between thousands of thoughts, feelings, and ideas. “We need the conservative mindset. It’s important that people have kids. It’s not either or.”

I share with him that as I see it, I signed up to be a mother in this lifetime. Even though I often find myself torn between my career and my family roles, I enjoy teaching my son and raising him to be a confident well-nourished human being. It is not how I was raised.

Søren agrees that we need people who set new standards for parenthood. He also takes this opportunity to talk about my chart. He mentions that because I have Makemake in the first house, I probably felt isolated and lonely throughout my childhood.

As an astrologer, I do not work with Makemake. His observation was true and interesting. But for me, the evidence that Søren is a great astrologer, was not so much in his insight, but more in the fact that he did not leave it as a mere piece of information. He also presented the high road of this placement, and the path I needed to take to get there.

“From that sense of isolation, we are asked to go inwards and find a sense of belonging in ourselves. It’s not easy to do. It’s all about taking back the power and moving into deeply rooted empowerment and sovereignty.”

Søren was exposed to astrology when he was a teenager. “I was very interested and started getting readings from gifted astrologers. It had a great impact right away. Astrology gave me insights on how to make better choices for myself, free my own lifeforce, and be more tuned with my creative inner self.”

About five years ago, he felt an urge to deepen his astrological understanding. He studied astrology with a senior teacher for three years. Today he has his own astrology practice, which he calls: The Hidden You. Unlock Your Lifeforce.

When I ask him about his personal growth through astrology, he says that there were many processes he went through, but the one that he still works with is finding balance between his ambition (Pluto in his 10^th house) and the need to tend to his psychological safety and emotional nourishment (4^th house). Career and ambition are easy for him, “But sometimes I also need to scale down, simplify, and create intimacy, simplicity, and safety,” he admits.

For me, the biggest question was how a mindful and spiritual being like Søren feels comfortable in the entertainment industry, which is highly competitive and sometimes harsh.

Søren says that yes, the entertainment business is competitive. There are many actors who want a part, and only one can get it.  Ninety-nine percent of actors are struggling, and the one percent who make it have their own challenges. “Life is simple but not easy,” he smiles.

“But,” he emphasizes, “behind the whole business part of the industry, there is an army of creative soulful people. Very often there is also an alternative, holistic, spiritual undercurrent in them. In that sense, it is a very warm environment to be in.”

Many people who worked with him on the set of “Emily in Paris” loved the fact that he was an astrologer and showed interest in his astrology practice. He even did a short reading for Philippine Leroy-Beaulieu, who played his girlfriend in the show, Sylvie. “We are in a time that is a renaissance for astrology,” he adds.

In my own astrology practice, I find that most of us struggle with the same themes. I ask Søren if he feels the same. Søren identifies the major issue we all deal with as our difficulty to be true to our inner voice and live honestly and authentically.

“I think many of us live a hidden life, hidden from what we are actually here to do.” He connects it with the name he chose for his practice. In Søren’s opinion, we are here to help each other by creating a safe space where we can be who we truly are, and say what we truly feel, without being judged or criticized.

“Truth is always liberating,” he adds, but it does not mean that we need to necessarily voice all of our truths. “Uncovering and working through our intimate truths can occur in the profound silence of our own contemplation.”

The key for authentic living is self-knowledge, through which we can learn to say yes to our authentic self. “Astrology is a fantastic tool to help people in a very quick and efficient way to take giant steps towards that self-knowledge,” he exclaims.

To finalize our enthusiastic conversation, I ask Søren how he would want to leave this world. What would give him a feeling that he did it right. “I would like to start with myself as a microcosmos of the world,” he replies.

He discloses that one of his biggest challenges is treating himself and his body with love, patience, compassion, and respect. “I’ve been very hard on my body and my looks. I’ve criticized myself too much,” he shares. “But for some years now, I’ve started having a love affair with my body. Not with my ego, not with my looks, but with my whole creation. I started perceiving my body, and each one of my cells, as a temple, a gift from Gaia.”

He believes that we cannot solve climate change, wars, and conflicts if we have the same wars going on within ourselves. The conflicts outside of us are a mere reflection of the conflicts inside of us. To resolve outer conflicts, we need to love our own lives, our own selves, our own bodies and inner energies.

I especially love that he adds that we need to bring harmony by going through conflicts rather than bypassing them. “Then, the world’s crisis, just like our own crisis, becomes a process of growth, even though it is difficult,” he concludes.

You are welcome to watch the full interview, where we discuss all of this in more in depth and much more. And you can check out Søren’s Instagram account here.

Watch the full interview:

 

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