Saara Aalto
Saara Aalto | |
|---|---|
| Born | Saara Sofia Aalto May 2, 1987 Oulunsalo, Finland |
| Occupation(s) | Vocalist, songwriter, voice actress |
| Years active | 2007–present |
| Known for | The Voice of Finland (2012), The X Factor UK (2016), Eurovision Song Contest 2018 |
Saara Sofia Aalto (born 2 May 1987) is a Finnish vocalist, songwriter, and voice actress. In 2012, she achieved second place during the inaugural season of The Voice of Finland. Her international breakthrough came as the runner-up on the thirteenth season of The X Factor UK in 2016.
In 2018, Aalto represented Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest, advancing to the grand final and securing 25th place. That same year, she served as a judge on X Factor Suomi. The following year, she participated in Dancing on Ice, where she finished third.
Early life
Aalto was born in Oulunsalo, Finland, into a family with strong musical roots and received piano instruction from Olga Maslak. She composed her first song at five years old. Her grandfather is the painter and documentary filmmaker Eeli Aalto, while magician Simo Aalto is her uncle. At age 11, she won the children’s song competition at the Kotka Maritime Festival with an original piece. In 2003, she secured victory in the Charlotte Church international singing contest held in the United States with another self-composed song.
In 2004, Aalto represented Finland at Romania’s Golden Stag International Song Contest. She completed her studies at Madetoja secondary school for music in 2005 before relocating to Helsinki to attend both the Sibelius Academy and Helsinki Pop & Jazz Conservatory.
2007–2011: Early career development
In 2007, Aalto was a top-three finalist in Talent Suomi ("Talent Finland").
Alongside her vocal pursuits, she performed in Finnish stage productions of musicals such as Wicked, portraying Dorothy and Pfannee, as well as Jesus Christ Superstar in the role of Mary Magdalene. From 2008 through 2011, she appeared in various musicals at Helsinki City Theatre, including parts in High School Musical on Stage!, its sequel, and Wicked.
2011 and 2016: Eurovision Song Contest attempts
Aalto made two bids to represent Finland at the Eurovision Song Contest. In 2011, she finished second in Finland’s national selection with 40.7% of the public vote, narrowly losing to Paradise Oskar. That year marked the launch of Yume Records, which she co-founded with Teemu Roivainen to independently distribute her music.
Her second bid occurred in 2016 through Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu, where she again placed second. Although winning the public vote, the jury favored Sandhja, who went on to represent Finland with "Sing It Away".
2010–2013: Achievements in China
Following her performance of "Blessed with Love" during Eurovision 2011 qualification, Aalto took part in December’s Santa Claus Season's Greetings Song Contest by singing "Ai De Zhu Fu," a Mandarin adaptation of her Eurovision entry. In November 2012, she appeared as a guest vocalist during Robert Wells’ acclaimed Rhapsody in Rock concert at Shanghai Daning Theatre. After opening for Spanish tenor José Carreras in May 2013 and performing in Chinese, she returned to Shanghai for a duet with tenor Han Peng at the Shanghai International Film Festival Closing Ceremony, an event broadcast to over 800 million viewers across ten countries.
Building on her favorable reception in China, Aalto released an album titled Ai De Zhu Fu in July 2013 aimed at audiences in Mainland China and other Chinese-speaking regions. The album comprises thirteen songs, nine of which are sung in Mandarin.
2012: Participation in The Voice of Finland
Aalto took part in the inaugural season of The Voice of Finland, delivering a blind audition performance of "Taking Chances" originally by Celine Dion, which led to all four judges turning their chairs. She opted to join Team Monroe and progressed through the Battle Round and live shows with renditions such as "Barracuda" and "Je suis malade". In the semifinal stage, her version of "Over the Rainbow" earned her a spot in the final, where she performed "I'm Gonna Be Strong" along with an original composition titled "My Love", ultimately finishing as the runner-up behind Mikko Sipola.
2016–present: UK The X Factor, Eurovision, and Wild Wild Wonderland
In 2016, Aalto auditioned for the thirteenth season of the UK edition of The X Factor, captivating the judges with her rendition of "Chandelier" by Sia. Although she was initially eliminated during the six-chair challenge, Nicole Scherzinger brought her back as a wildcard. Under Sharon Osbourne’s mentorship, she advanced through the live stages despite facing several bottom-three placements, often surviving sing-offs or deadlocks. Her performances featured songs like "Let It Go", "Run", "Bad Romance", and "The Winner Takes It All". She led public voting in both quarter-final and semi-final rounds and concluded the competition as second place with 40.4% of the vote.
In December 2016, Aalto revealed a five-album contract with Sony Music UK and Finland through ROAR Global management. By October 2017, she transitioned to Warner Music Group, citing their shared vision for developing her theatrical artistry. On 7 November 2017, she was officially announced as Finland’s representative at the Eurovision Song Contest 2018 in Lisbon, releasing three candidate songs ahead of the event.
Concurrently, she acted as a mentor on Finland’s version of The X Factor, guiding her category to victory despite missing the finale due to Eurovision obligations. Her debut album under Warner Music, Wild Wild Wonderland, was launched on 27 April 2018.
In 2019, Aalto participated in the eleventh series of Dancing on Ice, finishing in third place alongside partner Hamish Gaman. Her track "Dance Like Nobody's Watching" was selected as the official anthem for Pride in London 2019. That same year, she established her own label, No Fear Music, through which she released the Fairytale – International EP.
September 2020 saw Aalto releasing "When the Sun Goes Down", a collaboration with British drag performer Baga Chipz, following her departure from Warner Music earlier that year.
During autumn 2021, she starred as the lead in the Helsinki production of the musical We Will Rock You.
Personal life
Aalto was involved in a nine-year relationship with singer Teemu Roivainen that ended in 2013; however, they continued to work together musically.
Subsequently, she began dating Meri Sopanen, a personal trainer and life coach who had been a fan. Aalto has publicly identified as lesbian. The couple became engaged in August 2016 and relocated to London in January 2017. They married in April 2020, with Sopanen adopting Aalto’s surname. Due to restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, their wedding ceremony was postponed and they returned to Finland in spring 2020. The pair temporarily resided in Spain during autumn 2021 before moving back to Finland. Their wedding celebration took place in Italy in June 2023.
Albums
| Album Title | Information | Highest Chart Positions | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIN | |||||||||||||||||||
| Blessed with Love |
|
— | |||||||||||||||||
| Enkeleitä – Angels |
|
— | |||||||||||||||||
| You Had My Heart |
|
43 | |||||||||||||||||
| Ai De Zhu Fu |
|
— | |||||||||||||||||
| Tonight (collaboration with Teemu Roivainen) |
|
— | |||||||||||||||||
| Wild Wild Wonderland |
|
2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Fairytale – Joulun taikaa |
|
10 | |||||||||||||||||
| "—" indicates the album did not chart or was not released in that region. | |||||||||||||||||||
Extended plays
| EP Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Fairytale – International |
|
As lead artist
| Single Title | Release Year | Highest Chart Rankings | Associated Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIN |
FIN (Air) |
ICE |
SWE Heat. | |||
| "Blessed with Love" | 2011 | — | — | — | — | Blessed with Love |
| "You Had My Heart" | 2013 | — | — | — | — | You Had My Heart |
| "You Raise Me Up" (feat. Teemu Roivainen) |
2014 | — | — | — | — | Tonight |
| "No Fear" | 2016 | — | — | — | — | Wild Wild Wonderland |
| "Monsters" | 2018 | 13 | 6 | 19 | 7 | |
| "Domino" | — | 18 | — | — | ||
| "Queens" | — | 12 | — | — | ||
| "DANCE!!!" | — | — | — | — | ||
| "Dance Like Nobody's Watching" | 2019 | — | — | — | — | |
| "Starry Skies" | — | — | — | — | Fairytale – International | |
| "Tähdet, taivas ja sä" | — | — | — | — | Fairytale – Joulun taikaa | |
| "Koska et oo täällä enää" | — | 41 | — | — | ||
Featured Collaborations
| Track | Release Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Sydämesi tyhjä huone" (Teemu Roivainen with Saara Aalto) |
2015 | Sydämesi tyhjä huone |
Singles for Promotion
| Track | Release Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "My Love" (The Voice rendition) | 2012 | Standalone singles |
| "Enkeleitä" | 2013 | |
| "Reach the Stars"[lower-alpha 1] | 2014 | |
| "Feel Vegas" (Teemu Roivainen featuring Big Spender) |
2015 | |
| "Let It Go" | 2019 |
Guest Appearances
| Track | Release Year | Collaborating Artist(s) | Album Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Art of Forgiveness" | 2015 | Jonna Pirinen | Sound Mind |
| "All I Ask of You" | Waltteri Torikka | Sydän |
Movies
| Year | Film Title | Character Portrayed | Additional Information |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | The Tale of Despereaux | Princess Pea | Finnish dub version |
| 2010 | Alice in Wonderland | Alice | |
| 2011 | From Up on Poppy Hill | Umi | |
| 2012 | Brave | Soloist (soundtrack) | |
| 2012 | Rise of the Guardians | Tooth Fairy | |
| 2013 | Frozen | Anna | |
| 2015 | Frozen Fever | ||
| 2017 | Olaf's Frozen Adventure | ||
| 2019 | Frozen 2 | ||
| 2024 | Wicked | Glinda |
Television
| Year(s) | Show Title | Role Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011–present | Bubble Guppies | Molly | Finnish language version |
| 2011–2014 | Pokémon | Iris | |
| 2012–present | Winx Club | Musa | |
| 2015 | Hey Duggee | Norrie | |
| 2015 | Rocka-Bye Island | Lee | |
| 2016 | K3 | Kylie |
Honors and Recognitions
| Year | Awarding Body | Category | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Iltalehti | Finnish Person of the Year Award | Recipient |
| 2017 | Vuoden Positiivisin Suomalainen | Most Positive Individual in Finland | Recipient |
External links
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- 1987 births
- 20th-century Finnish female vocalists
- 21st-century Finnish actresses
- 21st-century Finnish female singers
- Finnish nationals residing in England
- Finnish pop vocalists
- Finnish female pop artists
- 21st-century Finnish female pianists
- 21st-century Finnish pianists
- Finnish women who write songs
- Finnish stage performers
- Finnish voice-over artists
- Lesbian songwriters
- Finnish LGBTQ vocalists
- Finnish LGBTQ songwriters
- Finnish lesbian actresses
- Finnish lesbian musicians
- Actors originating from Oulu
- Sibelius Academy graduates
- Contestants of The Voice franchise
- Contestants of The X Factor UK
- 20th-century Finnish LGBTQ individuals
- 21st-century Finnish LGBTQ individuals
- English-language singers from Finland
- Singers in Mandarin language
- Eurovision Song Contest participants
- Living people