Erja Lyytinen (born July 7, 1976 in Kuopio, Finland) is a Finnish vocalist, guitarist and songwriter.
Lyytinen started playing guitar at age fifteen and sang in a soul music group. Her influences include singers Aretha Franklin, Koko Taylor, and Bonnie Raitt. Lyytinen is a 1995 graduate of Kuopio Senior High of Music and Dance. She studied from 1995 to 1997 at the Kuopio Conservatory, 1997-1998 in Malmö Music Academy and 2003 in Copenhagen Rytmisk Konservatorium in Denmark, and has a Master of Music degree from Sibelius Academy in Helsinki.[1]
Lyytinen's debut album was the 2002 release Attention!, released by Bluelight Records. Wildflower (2003) and It's A Blessing (2005) were also released by Bluelight Records. In 2005 she signed with the German label Ruf Records and Blues Caravan with Aynsley Lister and Ian Parker. She recorded her third solo album Dreamland Blues in 2006 at Oxford, Mississippi with David Kimbrough and Kinney Kimbrough, both sons of the Mississippi blues legend Junior Kimbrough.
After two years relentless touring, she returned with a gritty Grip of the Blues in 2008, mixing hard-edged blues with modern R&B. Her 2010 release Voracious Love featured contributions from Marco Hietala (Nightwish) on vocals and Apocalyptica's cellist Paavo Lötjönen. Ruf Records also release her first live DVD/CD on the label's prestige collection of live releases titled Songs From The Road, which has featured Luther Allison, Jeff Healey, Canned Heat, Joanne Shaw Taylor and Royal Southern Brotherhood amongst others. Forbidden Fruit was the last release by Erja Lyytinen on Ruf Records and it featured co-written songs by Alan Darby who has also written songs for Bonnie Tyler and Bonnie Raitt.
After her stint on Ruf Records, Erja Lyytinen founded together with her then-partner Davide Floreno, a label called Tuohi Records. Tuohi Records has been releasing all Erja's albums up to the present day. Tuohi Records' first release The Sky Is Crying in 2013 was a tribute to the late Elmore James, where Erja returned to her blues roots and paid homage to one of the great originators of the slide guitar. The 2015 Tuohi Records release Live In London captured Erja and her band at its peak condition at one of London' most historic (and still-running venues) 100 Club. In the summer of 2016 she ventured to London State of the Ark Studio to record her Stolen Hearts album with engineer and producer Chris Kimsey. Lyytinen has toured across Europe and has performed on all major blues/roots festivals. She has been the supporting act for Walter Trout, Carlos Santana, Southside Johnny, John Mayall and Wishbone Ash. Erja has also shared the stage and jammed with Carlos Santana, Joe Bonamassa and Sonny Landreth.
http://www.erjalyytinen.com/
