Pete Parkkonen

Emerging from Pihtipudas, Finland, where he entered the world on February 8, 1990, Pete Parkkonen first drew widespread notice as a contestant on the 2008 season of Idols, Finland’s Pop Idol-style series. He placed third behind winner Koop Arponen. The exposure quickly led to a Sony Music contract and the 2009 arrival of his debut full-length release, The First Album. Performed entirely in English, the project yielded the Top Five single “Girl in a Uniform” and its successor “The Final Day,” launching a string of chart successes for the Finnish pop singer beginning the following year.