Jyrki Pekka Emil Linnankivi (born 15 October 1968), known professionally as Jyrki 69, is a Finnish singer who is the lead vocalist of the

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

The 69 Eyes The 69 Eyes are a Finnish rock band. It was founded in 1989 in Helsinki by vocalist Jyrki 69 (who also writes the band's lyrics), guitarists Bazie, Timo-Timo and bassist Archzie, joined in 1992 by drummer Jussi 69; the lineup never changed sin ...

. In their early years, the band's sound was closer to glam metal, but since the album ''

Blessed Be Blessed be may refer to * A modern Pagan or Wicca Wicca () is a modern Pagan religion. Scholars of religion categorise it as both a new religious movement and as part of the occultist stream of Western esotericism. It was developed in England ...

'' they have shifted into

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie a ...

. The 69 Eyes prefer to label their sound as "goth'n'roll". Jyrki's low and operatic

bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thr ...

vocal tone is reminiscent of fellow musicians Peter Steele of the gothic metal band

Type O Negative Type O Negative were an American gothic metal band formed in Brooklyn, New York City in 1989 by Peter Steele (bass, lead vocals), Kenny Hickey (guitar, co-lead vocals), Josh Silver (keyboards, backing vocals), and Sal Abruscato (drums, percussi ...

and

Andrew Eldritch Andrew Eldritch (born Andrew William Harvey Taylor, 15 May 1959) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. He is the frontman and only remaining original member of the Sisters of Mercy, a band that emerged from the British post-punk scene, ...

of the gothic rock band

The Sisters of Mercy The Sisters of Mercy is an English rock band, formed in 1980 in Leeds. After achieving early underground fame there, the band had their commercial breakthrough in the mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasin ...

(he covered their 1987 hit "

This Corrosion "This Corrosion" is a song by English rock band The Sisters of Mercy, released as the lead single from their second studio album, '' Floodland'' (1987), in September 1987. The song peaked at number 6 in Ireland, number 7 in the UK, and number 17 in ...

" with Maryslim in 2007). His voice has been influenced by

Elvis Presley Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

, Jim Morrison,

Iggy Pop James Newell Osterberg Jr. (born April 21, 1947), known professionally as Iggy Pop, is an American singer, musician, songwriter and actor. Called the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godfather of Punk", he was the vocalist and lyricist of ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known professionally as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer-songwriter and actor. A leading figure in the music industry, he is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the ...

and

Glenn Danzig Glenn Allen Anzalone (born June 23, 1955), better known by his stage name Glenn Danzig, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, film director, and record producer. He is the founder of the rock bands Misfits, Samhain, and Danzig. He owns t ...

. He has written most of the lyrics of their songs.

Music career

In 2002, Jyrki appeared on Kwan's album ''The Die Is Cast'', performing vocals on the track "Lyrics of Poison". On Maryslim's 2007 album ''A Perfect Mess'', Jyrki provided guest vocals on their cover of

's "

" and also appeared in the music video for the track. In October 2013, Jyrki joined forces with

Danny B. Harvey The Head Cat is an American rockabilly supergroup formed by vocalist/bassist Lemmy (of Motörhead), drummer Slim Jim Phantom (of The Stray Cats) and guitarist Danny B. Harvey (of Lonesome Spurs and The Rockats). Lemmy died in 2015 and as of 2 ...

and Chopper Franklin to form the rock band The 69 Cats. The group released their debut album ''Transylvanian Tapes'' in August 2014.

Other activities

In 2005, Jyrki was appointed

UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador is an official postnominal honorific title, title of authority, legal status and job description assigned to those goodwill ambassadors and advocates who are designated by the United Nations. The United Nations Intern ...

for Finland. In 2005 and 2006, he spent time in Kenya and helped campaign against HIV-AIDS situation in the country and against child trafficking and sexual exploitation in parts of West Africa. In 2006, he was honoured with a

TOYP Ten Outstanding Young Persons of the World (TOYP) program serves to formally recognize young people who excel in their chosen fields and exemplify the best attributes of the world's young people. The program is sponsored by Junior Chamber Interna ...

award by

Junior Chamber International Junior Chamber International, commonly referred to as JCI, is a non-profit international non-governmental organization of young people between and years old. It has members in about 124 countries, and regional or national organizations in mo ...

(JCI) in

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

, South Korea. He draws and reads comics specializing in

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

. A comic book called ''Zombie Love'', featuring only Jyrki's comics, was published in Finland in 2006. It was a limited hard cover edition of 1,000 and all the copies were numbered by Jyrki. Number 666 was given to

. A paperback edition is still available from the publisher Deggael Communications. He has been vegan since 2014.

Recording history

*'' Bump 'n' Grind'' (1992) *''

Motor City Resurrection ''Motor City Resurrection'' is an album by Finnish rock band The 69 Eyes, released in 1994. Although often listed as a studio album, it is a compilation of the band's early 7" singles and EPs. It even features a cover of Gimme Some Head, original ...

'' (1994) *'' Savage Garden'' (1995) *'' Wrap Your Troubles in Dreams'' (1997) *''

Wasting the Dawn ''Wasting the Dawn'' is the fourth studio album by The 69 Eyes, released in 1999, produced by Gaga Goodies / Poko Rekords. It was released internationally on Roadrunner Records. The album's hit single, "Wasting the Dawn", paid tribute to The Do ...

'' (1999) *''

'' (2000) *''

Paris Kills ''Paris Kills'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish rock band The 69 Eyes. It was released in 2002 on Gaga Goodies / Poko Rekords and re-released in 2007 on Cleopatra Records. The first single from the album was "Dance d'Amour". Track listing ...

'' (2002) *'' Framed in Blood – The Very Blessed of the 69 Eyes'' (2003) *''

Devils A devil is the personification of evil as it is conceived in many and various cultures and religious traditions. Devil or Devils may also refer to: * Satan * Devil in Christianity * Demon * Folk devil Art, entertainment, and media Film and t ...

'' (2004) *'' Angels'' (2007) *''Angels/Devils'' (2008) *'' The 69 Eyes: Hollywood Kills'' (2008) *'' Goth'N'Roll'' box set (2008) *'' Back in Blood'' (2009) *'' X'' (2012) *''The Best of Helsinki Vampires'' (2013) *''Transylvanian Tapes'' (2014) (with The 69 Cats) *''Universal Monsters'' (2016) *''Helsinki Vampire'' (2017) (solo album) *''Black Parade'' (2018) (with Musta Paraati) * ''West End'' (2019) (The 69 Eyes) *''Seven Year Itch'' (2021) (with The 69 Cats) *''American Vampire'' (2021) (solo album)

References

{{Authority control 1968 births Living people Finnish baritones