Kirsi Hannele Sirén (née Viilonen; 26 October 1964 – 3 December 2005), better known by her stage name Kikka, was a

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

pop/ schlager singer. She was known for her sexpot image and suggestive,

double entendre A double entendre (plural double entendres) is a figure of speech or a particular way of wording that is devised to have a double meaning, of which one is typically obvious, whereas the other often conveys a message that would be too socially ...

-filled songs. Kikka's best-known songs were ''"Mä haluun viihdyttää"'' ("I Want to Entertain"), ''"Sukkula Venukseen"'' ("A Shuttle to

Venus Venus is the second planet from the Sun. It is sometimes called Earth's "sister" or "twin" planet as it is almost as large and has a similar composition. As an interior planet to Earth, Venus (like Mercury) appears in Earth's sky never f ...

"), ''"Tartu tiukasti hanuriin"'' ("Grab the Accordion Firmly"; in Finnish slang the word ''hanuri'' often refers to the buttocks) and a cover of

Ami Aspelund Ami Aspelund (born Anne-Marie Aspelund on 7 September 1953 in Vaasa) is a Finland, Finnish singer. She is the younger sister of singer Monica Aspelund. Career Ami Aspelund released her first single in 1973 called "Apinamies", which is a Finnis ...

's ''Apinamies'' ("Ape man"). Sirén was born in

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 ...

. Her career was launched in the late 1980s, inspired by the success of international sexpot stars such as

Samantha Fox Samantha Karen Fox (born 15 April 1966) is an English pop singer and former glamour model from East London. She rose to public attention aged 16, when her mother entered her photographs in an amateur modelling contest run by ''The Sunday Peopl ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Sabrina Salerno Sabrina Debora Salerno (born 15 March 1968), known mononymously as Sabrina, is an Italian singer, songwriter, record producer, model, actress and television presenter. During her career, she has sold over 20 million records worldwide and scored ...

. During her career, the media and many influential organisations even tried to market her as the "Samantha Fox of Finland", albeit against the singer's will. The peak of Kikka's popularity was in the late 1980s and early 1990s when she earned three platinum records and two gold records. In the 21st century, health problems and

alcoholism Alcoholism is, broadly, any drinking of alcohol that results in significant mental or physical health problems. Because there is disagreement on the definition of the word ''alcoholism'', it is not a recognized diagnostic entity. Predomi ...

were detrimental to the artist's career. According to the Finnish tabloid Iltalehti, the cause of her death in

Nokia Nokia Corporation (natively Nokia Oyj, referred to as Nokia) is a Finnish multinational telecommunications, information technology, and consumer electronics corporation, established in 1865. Nokia's main headquarters are in Espoo, Finland, i ...

on 3 December 2005, at the age of 41, was a heart attack.Kikka oli 1990-luvun lupaus – ystävä Raija Pelli kertoo laulajan viimeisistä hetkistä
– ''Metropoli'' (in Finnish) In 2022, a biographical film about Sirén called ''Kikka!'' was directed by the Jussi-award-winning actress Anna Paavilainen and written by Maarit Nissilä.Kikka pääsee valkokankaalle – ”Toisille Kikka on edelläkävijä ja esikuva, toisille typerä mauton bimbo, joillekin uhri ja muistutus 1980-luvun arvomaailmasta”
– ''

Aamulehti (Finnish for "morning newspaper") is a Finnish-language daily newspaper published in Tampere, Finland. History and profile ''Aamulehti'' was founded in 1881 to "improve the position of the Finnish people and the Finnish language" during Russ ...

'' (in Finnish)

Discography

Albums

* ''Mä haluun viihdyttää'' (1989) * ''Kiihkeät tuulet'' (1990) * ''Kikka 3'' (1991) * ''Parhaat puoleni'' (1992) * ''Käyrä nousemaan'' (1993) * ''Ota vaatteet pois'' (1994) * ''Kikka Remix'' (1995) * ''Parhaat 20 suosikkisävelmää'' (1997) * ''Herkut lisukkeineen'' (2000) * ''Hitit'' (2002) * ''Kaikkien aikojen parhaat (2CD)'' (2009)

References

External links

* Ville Matilainen:
Mä haluun viihdyttää! – Seksikäs, kaunis ja ennen kaikkea rohkea Kikka
'. YLE Elävä Arkisto, June 27, 2019. (in Finnish) 1964 births 2005 deaths 20th-century Finnish women singers musicians from Tampere {{Finland-singer-stub