| Elastinen | |
|---|---|
Elastinen at Cotton Club in 2006 |
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| Background information | |
| Birth name | Kimmo Ilpo Juhani Laiho |
| Also known as | Ela, Koala Laiho |
| Born | April 18, 1981 Helsinki, Finland |
| Genres | rap, hiphop |
| Occupations | Musician, CEO of Rähinä Records, producer |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels | Rähinä Records |
| Website | www.elastinen.com |
Elastinen (Elastic) (born Kimmo Ilpo Juhani Laiho in 1981) is a Finnish rap musician and also known as one of the founders and is the CEO of the Finnish independent rap label Rähinä Records. Together with his colleague Iso H, he forms the Finnish rap crew Fintelligens. He has also released three solo albums.
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Born in Helsinki, Elastinen began taking guitarlessons when he was seven years old. At the age of 11 he started dancing and has been a member of famous break-dance groups as IMC and Savage Feet. Inspired by a hiphop-cassette, given by his elder-brother, "Ela" wrote his first rap-lyrics when he was 15. He joined an anti-racist musical "Colorblind" and met Iso H. In summer 1997, Elastinen and Iso H founded Fintelligens. Elastinen was only 18 when they got their first record-deal.
Ela graduated from Sibelius high school (a music school) in 2000. Same year Fintelligens released debut album "Renesanssi". Renesanssi certified gold and 1/3 of it is produced by Elastinen. In autumn 2001, Elastinen and Iso H released their second album, Tän Tahtiin. It sold also gold and is partly produced by him.
When Elastinen was doing his military service at Santahamina in 2002 he used his freetime performing shows with Iso H. Fintelligens released third studio album in November. "Kokemusten Summa" sold gold and is entirely produced by Elastinen.
In 2004 Elastinen released his solo debut "Elaksis Kivi". In 2006 he finished his second album "Anna Soida". The first single, the album's title track, was a hit. "Anna Soida" was released in 2006. His third album, "E.L.A.", was released in November 2007, under a year after "Anna Soida". First single from the album, "Ovet Paukkuu", was #1 on NRJ-Finland and had heavy rotation also on Finnish MTV and The Voice.