The Alesso recording behind a spring 2016 new-music roundup was “I Wanna Know,” featuring the Norwegian duo Nico & Vinz. It was an official single, not a leak, and its history is unusually clear: the audio arrived on April 1, an official video followed on April 26, an Alesso and Deniz Koyu remix appeared in May, and a larger remix package followed in June.
That orderly chronology contrasts with the loose “Nandoleaks” branding under which some radio audiences encountered it. No evidence suggests that an unauthorized file preceded the commercial release. More importantly, “I Wanna Know” marked a deliberate change of scale for a producer widely associated with towering festival records.
The verified release timeline
Apple Music dates the one-song single to April 1, 2016 and identifies Alefune as the copyright holder, with an exclusive United States license to Def Jam Recordings. Universal Music Japan announced the track on the same date, confirming that this was an intentional international release rather than a circulating demo.
The official video appeared on April 26 through Alesso’s verified YouTube artist channel. A contemporary Universal Music Norway announcement described it as the video for the Scandinavian collaboration. Colin Tilley directed the clip, which turned the song’s romantic uncertainty into a stylized story about two young racers.
A later Dutch radio roundup mentioned “Alesso ft. Nico & Vinz,” but the underlying record was already officially available. Any unavailable embed from that page should not be replaced with a random repost; the artist-channel video is the authoritative watch source.
The subsequent versions also have documented dates. Universal Music Italy’s catalog lists the Alesso and Deniz Koyu remix on May 13 and The Remixes on June 24. That package included versions by Halogen and Ansolo as well. These are licensed remixes, not bootlegs, and should be distinguished from the many unofficial EDM edits that appeared on sharing platforms.
Who made “I Wanna Know”
Alesso is the stage name of Swedish producer Alessandro Lindblad. Nico & Vinz are the Norwegian duo of Nicolas “Nico” Sereba and Vincent “Vinz” Dery. Although some casual listings render all three acts as equal primary artists, the original single is formally billed to Alesso featuring Nico & Vinz.
Apple Music’s detailed song credits name Alessandro Lindblad, Vincent Dery, Kahouly Nicolay Sereba and Ozzy Jaquesson Sowe as songwriters. Alesso is credited as producer and mixing engineer; Nico & Vinz provide the vocals. Universal’s catalog independently identifies Lindblad as producer and mixer and the two duo members as vocalists.
Those credits clarify one easy misconception. Nico & Vinz were not anonymous session singers added to an instrumental after the fact. Their members share writing credit and supply the record’s defining vocal performance. Sowe’s presence in the composition ledger further shows that the song emerged from a collaborative writing process, even though Alesso retained sole documented production control over the original.
The label picture varies by territory. Apple’s U.S. page names Alefune and Def Jam; the UK chart archive lists Virgin; Universal’s Italian database displays Alesso/Def Jam. These are territorial licensing and distribution differences, not proof of separate master recordings.
A smaller drop with a different kind of force
Alesso’s early-2010s reputation rested on records engineered for large spaces: “Years,” “Calling (Lose My Mind),” “Under Control” and “Heroes (We Could Be)” paired emotional chord progressions with enormous dance releases. “I Wanna Know” retains his instinct for uplift but lowers the pressure.
The percussion is comparatively light, the low end rounded rather than punishing, and the synth arrangement leaves the voices exposed. Instead of building toward one colossal payoff, the production maintains a gently propulsive pulse. This is musical interpretation, but it helps explain the single’s place in Alesso’s development: its drama comes from hesitation rather than impact.
Nico & Vinz sing from inside an undefined relationship, seeking a direct answer from someone who keeps sending mixed signals. The repeated question works efficiently as a pop hook because it is both conversational and unresolved. Alesso surrounds it with enough space for doubt to remain audible.
The restraint connected him to a broader mid-2010s shift in electronic pop. Tropical house, streaming playlists and post-festival crossover records were rewarding softer textures and compact emotional premises. “I Wanna Know” does not simply imitate that trend—its polished chord language remains recognizably Alesso—but it shows him adapting to a market less dependent on the traditional EDM drop.
The video gives uncertainty a physical form
Colin Tilley’s official video focuses on two men competing as drivers while their romantic relationships become entangled with the race. The narrative uses speed, risk and rivalry to externalize the song’s emotional question. Rather than showing Alesso performing behind decks, it gives the track a compact cinematic world.
Wonderland’s contemporary premiere coverage emphasized the video’s arrival and Nico & Vinz’s vocal role. Its timing—more than three weeks after the audio—reflects a standard staged campaign: establish the streaming single, then refresh attention with a high-production visual.
The video’s plot can be read as a critique of competitive masculinity, though that interpretation is not stated in the credits. The drivers treat victory as the measure of control, while the relationships around them remain less manageable. The song asks for emotional certainty; the images offer speed as a poor substitute.
A modest chart result with a long digital life
“I Wanna Know” was not one of Alesso’s largest UK singles. The Official Charts Company records a peak of No. 100 on the main chart, with one week in the top 100. It performed somewhat better on component rankings, reaching No. 57 on the Singles Sales and Downloads charts and No. 30 on the Dance Singles chart.
Those figures matter because enormous video and streaming totals can create the false impression of a universal chart smash. The track acquired a substantial global digital audience, but its UK chart run was brief. Both facts can be true. Platform longevity, international reach and weekly national sales rankings measure different kinds of success.
The remix campaign extended the record’s club utility. Deniz Koyu’s collaboration with Alesso made the arrangement more suitable for peak-time sets, while Halogen and Ansolo offered alternate approaches. The original remained the key version, however, because its relative softness was the aesthetic decision that distinguished it.
Later in 2016, Alesso recorded another version of “I Wanna Know” with Taiwanese singer Jolin Tsai. That September release should not be confused with the Nico & Vinz single: it involved a different featured vocalist and a revised cross-market presentation. It was a later adaptation, not the April master’s original billing.
“I Wanna Know” is best understood as an official April 1, 2016 single whose significance exceeds its modest British chart peak. Its credits document a genuine Swedish-Norwegian writing partnership, its authorized video supplied a narrative afterlife, and its licensed remixes broadened its club reach. Most of all, it caught Alesso learning that a festival-scale producer could create tension by withholding the explosion.