Kristján Kristjánsson also known as KK () is an
Iceland
Iceland is a Nordic countries, Nordic island country between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge between North America and Europe. It is culturally and politically linked with Europe and is the regi ...
ic blues and folk musician.
Early life and career
KK was born on 26 March 1956, in Minnesota,
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, to Icelandic parents but moved to Iceland with his family around the age of 10. He attended music school in
Malmö
Malmö is the List of urban areas in Sweden by population, third-largest city in Sweden, after Stockholm and Gothenburg, and the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, sixth-largest city in Nordic countries, the Nordic region. Located on ...
, Sweden for four years and then played his way across Europe from 1985 until 1990, when he returned to Iceland. He has been nominated for the Gríma Prize twice and has been awarded the Icelandic Music Prize twice.
["KK á Gljúfrasteini"]
Mál og Menning 13 June 2009
In 2007 he toured to
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
with Magnús Eiríksson ("Maggi") and Óttar Felix Hauksson in advance of the release of their next recording there and in Iceland. In 2010 he played with his band at the World Expo in Shanghai, representing Iceland.
KK appeared as supporting character "Gunnar", an Icelandic musician that is the father of
Tuppence Middleton
Tuppence Amelia Middleton (born 21 February 1987) is a British actress. In 2010, she was nominated for the ''London Evening Standard'' Film Awards for Most Promising Newcomer.
Middleton appeared in various films before making her breakthrough ...
's character, Riley Blue/Gunnarsdóttir, on the Netflix series ''
Sense8
''Sense8'' () is an American science fiction drama television series created by Lana and Lilly Wachowski and J. Michael Straczynski for Netflix. The production companies behind ''Sense8'' included the Wachowskis' Anarchos Productions (replac ...
''.
Personal life
The singer is KK's sister. He composed "
I think of angels" and he and Ellen perform it in memory of their older sister, Inger, who died in a car crash in 1992. A video of them performing the song produced by the Icelandic Red Cross is used for
Red Cross
The organized International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 16million volunteering, volunteers, members, and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ...
fundraising.
Traditionally, KK and Ellen perform Christmas music every year in
Reykjavík
Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...
.
KK and Ellen
, Things to Do, VisitReykjavik.is, 2 December 2010.
Discography
Singles
;Solo
*2012: "Frelsið" (ICE #1)
;as KK & Magnús Eiríksson
*2013: "Á sjó" (ICE #9)
Albums
Solo
*1991: "Lucky One" (KK)
*1995: "Gleðifólkið" (KK)
*1997: "Heimaland" (KK)
*2001: "Galfjaðrir" (KK)
*2002: "Paradís" (KK)
*2004: "Upphafið" (KK)
*2006: "Blús" (12 Tonar)
*2008: "Svona eru menn" (JPV)
KK Band
*1992: "Bein leið"
*1993: "Hotel Föroyar"
KK and Magnus
(at times, credited as KK og Magnus Eiríksson)
*1996: "Ómissandi fólk"
*1999: "Kóngur einn dag" (Japis)
*2000: "Lifað og leikið" (Zonet)
*2003: "22 Ferðalög" (Zonet)
*2005: "Fleiri ferðalög" (Zonet)
*2007: "Langferðalög" (Zonet)
*2011: "Þrefaldur" (Zonet 044) (three-disc set including ''Ómissandi fólk'', ''Kóngur einn dag,'' and ''Lifað og leikið.'')
*2013: "Úti á sjó"
KK and Ellen
*2005: "Jólin eru að koma"
*2011: "Jólin"
References
Sources
* Einar Kárason
Einar Kárason (born 24 November 1955 in Reykjavík, Iceland) is an Icelandic writer and poet.
Einar has been a full-time writer since 1978. He started his career with poetry in literary magazines from 1978 to 1980. In 1981 he published his firs ...
. ''KK: þangað sem vindurinn blæs''. Reykjavík: Almenna bókafélagið, 2002. (biography)
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kk
1956 births
American emigrants to Iceland
Icelandic musicians
Living people