Bios
Bio 1
Ethno-pop artist Vilma Jää is a fierce force, bringing folk music into the mainstream by merging tradition with pop. Vilma Jää tells centuries-old stories and blends traditional folk instruments with synthetic beats as Finno-Ugric traditions flirt with pop aesthetics.
Vilma Jää is a singer, composer, fiddler, and researcher who works across folk music, pop, and opera and holds a Master of Music degree. Jää’s role as a folk singer in Kaija Saariaho’s opera Innocencereceived international acclaim after its premiere in July 2021. In 2024, Jää's debut album Kosto won the Ethno Album of the Year award at the 'Finnish Grammys' Emma Gala and the Folk Music Album of the Year award at the Eläköön FOLK! Gala and was nominated for the Teosto Award. Selected for music media YleX's Breakthrough 2023 list, Vilma Jää’s singles Saatanan saalistaja (Fucking Predator) and Humalahullu (The Raving Drunk) featured on the YleX playlist, while Jäinen neiti (Icy Maiden) was added to the Radio Suomi playlist. In 2022, a panel of music experts ranked Saatanan saalistaja (Fucking Predator) among the top 100 global songs in a survey by Finland's leading newspaper Helsingin Sanomat. The first single Huutaa of her upcoming second album was featured on Levyraati—the legendary TV show for new music—in February 2025.
Bio 2
Vilma Jää is an ethno-pop artist who draws her strength from intense emotions and grand themes. Her music blends folk traditions with pop, where traditional acoustic instruments—from the kantele to the hurdy-gurdy—meld with synthetic beats, as Finno-Ugric singing traditions flirt with pop aesthetics. Vilma Jää gained international recognition when Kaija Saariaho composed a folk singer role for her in the opera InnocenceHer debut single Saatanan saalistaja (Fucking Predator) released in 2021, quickly established her as one of Finland’s most intriguing new artists, and her 2023 album Kostocemented her place at the forefront of Finnish music, winning the Ethno Album of the Year award at the Emma Gala and the Folk Music Album of the Year award at the Eläköön FOLK! Gala.
Bio 3
In Vilma Jää’s ethno-pop music, acoustic and electronic sounds intertwine, blending traditional folk instruments with synthetic beats. Her 2023 album Kostofuses Finno-Ugric singing traditions with pop aesthetics and won the Ethno Album of the Year award at the Emma Gala and the Folk Music Album of the Year award at the Eläköön FOLK! Gala.