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I am Heidi Lehto (née Kaarto, married Paananen), a barefoot Swedish-Finnish singer/songwriter and translator/AV subtitler. Sweden is my birth and home country, while Finland is my emotional and linguistic homeland. I consider this duality a valuable asset.
From a young age, I was deeply connected to minority culture. I have always danced, sung, and played the accordion to the rhythm of Finnish schlager and dance music. Finalist placements in the Ikaalinen schlager singing competitions and the Seinäjoki Tango Festival in 1997 opened the doors for me to become an entertainer on dance floors.
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Alongside singing, I worked for seven years around the turn of the millennium as a presenter for children's and youth programs at Sveriges Radio Sisuradio.
Nowadays, I sing, compose, and write lyrics in the ÄKTA! ensemble, and with this group, we perform bilingual concerts for the whole family across Sweden. The four-set Suomi dances, on the other hand, are handled as duo performances, with the music being old, traditional dance music.
