The Question
Climate activist Greta Thunberg has a younger sister who has recently drawn her own media attention — after singing videos went viral online, viewers realized the performer behind them was Greta's sibling. This file checks the public record on who she is, what she does, and how her life and career differ from her famous sister's.
Subject Identification
Beata Mona Lisa Ernman Andersson was born November 3, 2005, in Stockholm, Sweden — the younger daughter of opera singer Malena Ernman and actor/producer Svante Thunberg, and younger sister of Greta Thunberg. She was born Beata Thunberg but performs and is publicly known today as Beata Ernman, or by her stage name Beata MonaLisa — having stepped away from the Thunberg surname to build an identity separate from her sister's fame.
How She Makes Her Living
Unlike Greta, whose public role is activism funded through donated royalties and prize money, Beata's path is a performing career — music, dance, and acting.
By her own account she started dancing at age three and singing at seven, performing in school shows early on. At 13 she appeared on the Swedish TV program Bingolotto and was cast as the young Édith Piaf in the musical Forever Piaf (2020), starring alongside her mother, Malena Ernman.
As of 2026 she is finishing a debut album, which she has described as being about "the freedom of identity and empowering women." A viral cover video — reported as a rendition of Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" — brought new attention to her singing in recent weeks, at which point wider audiences realized she was Greta Thunberg's sister.
She performs under her mother's maiden name, Ernman, rather than Thunberg. Asked about her relationship to her sister's activism by Interview magazine, she said simply: "I'm not responsible for other people's lives."
Beata has spoken publicly — including on the Swedish talk show Skavlan in 2019 — about living with ADHD, Asperger's syndrome, and OCD, and about being bullied. She also shared these experiences as a co-author of her family's 2020 memoir.
Life in Greta's Shadow
Greta's global fame came with a personal cost for her sister. In a 2019 interview with the Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter, Greta said her sister bore the brunt of the backlash directed at the family:
Beata has since built a public profile deliberately distinct from her sister's — choosing a stage name, a different field (entertainment rather than climate activism), and pushing back publicly when the two are compared.
Timeline
Begins dancing at age three and singing at age seven, performing in school productions.
Greta's climate activism brings global media attention to the family; Greta publicly discusses the bullying and harassment her then-13-year-old sister faced as a result.
Appears on Swedish talk show Skavlan, speaking openly about ADHD, Asperger's syndrome, OCD, and bullying.
Cast as young Édith Piaf in the musical Forever Piaf alongside her mother; co-authors the family memoir "Our House Is on Fire."
Performing as Beata MonaLisa, a cover video goes viral; wider audiences learn of her connection to Greta. She is reported to be finishing her debut album.
Sources
- 📰 HELLO! Magazine — Meet Greta Thunberg's Very Different Sister Profile with direct quotes from Beata and from Greta's 2019 Dagens Nyheter interview. Published July 14, 2026.
- 🎙️ Interview Magazine — Beata MonaLisa on Music, Identity & Her Sister Primary interview source for quotes on her career and her relationship to Greta's fame.
- 🌐 South China Morning Post — Meet Greta Thunberg's Singer Sister Coverage of her music career and upcoming debut album.
- 📰 Ynetnews — Greta Thunberg's Sister Changed Her Name, Became a Model Reporting on her name change from Thunberg to Ernman and early TV/stage career.
- 📚 Literary Review — "Our House Is on Fire" (Book Review) Review of the family memoir co-authored by Beata Ernman, Malena Ernman, Greta Thunberg, and Svante Thunberg.
- 🌐 Greta Thunberg — Wikipedia Background on the Thunberg-Ernman family.