Johanna Ewana Ekmark (born 8 October 1994), also known as Winona Oak and sometimes as Oaks, is a Swedish singer-songwriter. In 2018, she became known for her cover of the Haim song "Don't Save Me" and collaborative singles like "Beautiful" (with What So Not) and "Hope" (with The Chainsmokers).

Early life

Oak was born in Umeå but grew up on Sollerön, an island in Lake Siljan in the central-southerly locality of Mora. She graduated from Moragymnasiet in 2013 and later moved to Stockholm.

Career

In February 2018, Oak collaborated with What So Not for the single "Beautiful", which won Best Independent Dance/Electronica/Club single at the AIR Independent Music Awards in July 2019.

In October 2018, Oak signed to Neon Gold and Atlantic.

Oak was featured on The Chainsmokers second studio album, Sick Boy (released December 2018), in the song "Hope". For the music video of the song, Oak appeared in "dressed in a tan trench coat and red flannel shirt".

On 10 December 2018 Oak released a music video for her cover of the song "Don't Save Me” by Haim, via Neon Gold and Atlantic.

Oak released her debut studio album Island of the Sun on 10 June 2022.

Discography

Studio albums

TitleDetails
Island of the SunReleased: 10 June 2022 Label: Atlantic Formats: Digital download, streaming, CD

EPs

TitleDetails
ClosureReleased: 10 January 2020 Labels: Neon Gold, Atlantic Format: Digital download
SheReleased: 23 October 2020 Labels: Neon Gold, Atlantic Format: Digital download
VoidReleased: 3 May 2024 Labels: Atlantic Format: Digital download
SaltReleased: 7 February 2025 Labels: Atlantic Format: Digital download

Singles

As lead artist

TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
CZESVKSWI
"Don't Save Me"2018Non-album single
"He Don't Love Me"2019Closure & Island of the Sun
"Break My Broken Heart"
"Let Me Know"Closure
"Lonely Hearts Club"2020
"Oxygen" (with Robin Schulz)73381Non-album single
"Thinking About You" (with R3hab)
"With Myself"She
"Piano in the Sky"She and Island of the Sun
"She"She
"Winter Rain"2021Non-album single
"Nobody Loves Me" (featuring Elio)
"Lonely Hearts Club" (with Leebada)
"Old Insecurities"
"World We Used to Know" (with Alan Walker)World of Walker
"Island of the Sun"2022Island of the Sun
"Baby Blue"
"Jojo"
"With or Without You"2023Void
"Fire Escapes"
"Fragile Thing"
"If I Were to Die"2024
"Inside Out" (featuring Boy in Space)
"You're Always High"Salt
"Where Do I Go" (with Nicky Romero, Vikkstar and Alpharock)Non-album single
"My Body"Salt
"I Broke Me First"
"Another Life" (with NOTD)2025Digital Notes
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

As featured artist

TitleYearPeak chart positionsAlbum
SWEAUSAUTCZENLNORNZSWI
"Beautiful" (What So Not featuring Winona Oak)2018Non-album single
"Hope" (The Chainsmokers featuring Winona Oak)6336562070402771Sick Boy
"One by One" (Robin Schulz and Topic featuring Oaks)2024TBA
"Carry You" (Martin Garrix and Third Party featuring Oaks and Declan J Donovan)IDEM
"My Heart Goes" (Sam Feldt featuring Oaks)2025Time After Time
"Beliving In Us" (Cheat Codes featuring Oaks)________Future Resonance
"Echo" (The Chainsmokers featuring Oaks)2026Non-album single
"—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.

Awards and nominations

List of awards and nominations
CeremonyYearRecipientCategoryResultRef.
AIR Awards2019"Beautiful" (featuring What So Not)Best Independent Dance, Electronica or Club SingleWon

Notes

Further reading