Janita
| Janita | |
|---|---|
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Janita Maria Raukko |
| Born |
28 December 1978 Helsinki, Finland |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) | Singer-songwriter |
| Instruments |
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| Years active | 1992–present |
| Labels |
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| Website | www |
Janita Maria (née Raukko; born 28 December 1978), better known by her stage name Janita, (pronounced "YA-nee-tuh") is a Finnish-American singer-songwriter. Born in Helsinki, she started her career in Finland and later moved to Brooklyn at the age of 17 together with her then manager Tomi Ervi. Janita has released nine albums in her native Finland, some of which reached the top forty chart in Finland. Her third US album, Didn't You My Dear?, was released worldwide in March 2015 on ECR Music Group.
Janita Maria was born December 28, 1978 in Helsinki, Finland. She learned to sing before she could talk, and began playing electric piano at age three. She started writing her own songs on piano at age four, and often performed and danced with the encouragement of family and her mother. While she was never formally trained in singing, she seriously studied both classical piano and ballet. She was exposed to diverse music at a young age, often singing along to soul music, hip hop, and R&B.
At age 13 she met her long-term songwriting partner and musical collaborator Tomi Ervi (aka Tomi Sachary). She began recording and performing pop vocals with Ervi. Janita signed to the label Reel Art at age 13, who released her first single, "Jos Jäät", in 1992. Her full debut album, Oma Planeetta, followed in 1993. A second album, Sävyjä, was released in 1994 on Reel Art.
As a teenager she soon broke into the mainstream in Finland, and became a fixture on radio, television, and on the touring and commercial circuits. According to The Daily Telegraph, as a teenager she was "Finland's biggest popstar". She also won two Finnish Emma Awards. Her third album, Believer, was released on Dig It Records in 1997, peaking at number fourteen on the Finnish Albums Chart. Dig It also released her single "Ready or Not" around that time.
Janita moved to Brooklyn, New York City at age 17. She was quickly signed to Sony Music Entertainment's 550 Music at age 18. Janita, which included new music and the track "Getting Over" from Believer, was released in Australia and Japan in 1998, and also released in Finland. The album was never officially released in the United States by Sony as a result of label infighting.
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Wikipedia