Mikko Tapio Alatalo (born 1 May 1951) is a Finnish musician and

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

Career

Alatalo was born in

Kuivaniemi Kuivaniemi is a List of former municipalities of Finland, former municipality of Finland. It was located in the provinces of Finland, province of Oulu (province), Oulu and is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia regions of Finland, region. The munici ...

, now a part of

Ii, Finland Ii (; sv, Ijo) is a municipality of Finland. It is situated by the Bothnian Bay, at the mouth of river Iijoki, and it is part of the Northern Ostrobothnia region. The municipality has a population of () and covers an area of of which is wat ...

. He is mostly known for his long and successful musical career. His style is primarily seen as children's music and

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has b ...

but he has contributed to other genres as well, including a long partnership with rock musician

Juice Leskinen Juhani Juice Leskinen (officially Pauli Matti Juhani "Juice" Leskinen; 19 February 1950 – 24 November 2006), better known as Juice Leskinen ( as if the word ''juice'' were Finnish) was one of the most important and successful Finnish singer- ...

. A significant part of his songs were co-written with Harri Rinne. His most famous songs include "Maalaispoika oon" ("I'm a country boy"), "Hasardi", "Rokkilaulaja" ("Rock singer"). In the 1980s his style changed from rock more towards schlager. He also made some children's songs (including "Känkkäränkkä", "Taitaa tulla kesä") that became famous. Alatalo was also seen on numerous TV programs, often hosting music top lists, schlager music shows and programs on recreational alpine skiing. Alatalo was elected to the

Parliament of Finland The Parliament of Finland ( ; ) is the unicameral and supreme legislature of Finland, founded on 9 May 1906. In accordance with the Constitution of Finland, sovereignty belongs to the people, and that power is vested in the Parliament. The ...

in 2003 and re-elected in 2007, 2011 and 2015. He was also elected to the City Council of

Tampere Tampere ( , , ; sv, Tammerfors, ) is a city in the Pirkanmaa region, located in the western part of Finland. Tampere is the most populous inland city in the Nordic countries. It has a population of 244,029; the urban area has a population o ...

in 2008 and 2012. Alatalo is a member of the Centre Party and a strong proponent of artists'

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

rights to their own music.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Maalaispoika oon'' (1974) * ''Hasardi'' (1976) * ''Rokkilaulaja'' (1977) * ''Viimeinen lehmipoika'' (1978) * ''Yhdentoista virran maa – Lauluja Siirtomaa-Suomesta 1'' (1978) * ''Onnenpoika'' (1979) * ''Iso joki tulvii – Lauluja Siirtomaa-Suomesta 2'' (1981) * ''Eläimiä suomalaismetsissä'' (1981) * ''III tasavallan vieraana – Lauluja Siirtomaa-Suomesta 3'' (1982) * ''Sielun miljonääri'' (1983) * ''Ikävän karkoitus'' (1984) * ''Känkkäränkkä ja Artturi Robotti'' (1984) * ''En lantis är jag'' (1984) * ''Syntynyt lähiössä'' (1986) * ''Kaikilla mausteilla'' (1987) * ''Lapsi on terve, kun se heiluu'' (1988) * ''Känkkäränkkä-hiihtokoulu'' (1989) * ''Kuule kuinka kulkee'' (1990) * ''Joulun laulut'' (1990) * ''Yö alkaa yhdeltätoista'' (1991) * ''Känkkäränkän uudet kujeet'' (1992) * ''Puutarha'' (1993) * ''Herraksi synnytään'' (1994) * ''Yökynttilä'' (1997) * ''Taksimiehen poika'' (1999) * ''Suosituimmat yhteislaulut'' (2000) * ''Kantri'' (2001) * ''Kaikki sitä tekevät mielellään! – Kantri 2'' (2008) * ''Maailma tarvii duunaria – Kantri 3'' (2013) * ''Viimeinen juna'' (2018)

References

External links

Official website
1951 births Living people People from Ii Centre Party (Finland) politicians Members of the Parliament of Finland (2003–07) Members of the Parliament of Finland (2007–11) Members of the Parliament of Finland (2011–15) Members of the Parliament of Finland (2015–19) 20th-century Finnish male singers University of Tampere alumni {{Finland-singer-stub