After starting to perform concerts in his home country, Sten spent a year at the Lillehammer Institute of Music Production and Industries (LIMPI) in
Lillehammer. It was during this time that he first came into contact with
Universal Music Norway. In October 2024, Sten released his debut EP,
Tjue år. In March 2023, he released the song
Hvem kan seile foruten vind with
Lille Caesar, which reached number three on the Norwegian singles chart. That same month, Sten also entered the top 10 with the song
Eli, which later climbed to number five. He released his self-titled debut album, in May 2025, which debuted at number one on the Norwegian album chart. The song
Ka visste eg, included on the album, became another top 5 hit for Stenersen. In August 2025, he released
Tobias Sten (utvida), an expanded version of the album with three additional tracks. In November 2025, he won the Norwegian
P3 Gull music award for "Song of the Year" for his song "Fy faen du e deili." He also won the Newcomer category.
Spotify ranked Sten as the second most-streamed artist in Norway in 2025, behind
Taylor Swift. He also had two songs, "Fy faen du e deili" and "Eli," in the top 10 most-streamed songs in Norway. In February 2026, Sten reached number one on the Norwegian singles chart for the first time with the song "Hånd i hånd." ==Musical style and reception==