Lenka
Photo: buzzworthy.mtv.com
Lenka was born on 1978. She is an Australian television actress turned ensemble musician with Decoder Ring, turned solo singer-songwriter, most famous worldwide for her song "The Show", which has been used in numerous advertisements, most notably for Old Navy. She is now based in Los Angeles.
Previously best known as an actress in Australia and as a host of a long-running children’s breakfast cartoon program Cheez TV in Australia, she has appeared in numerous Australian television serials and feature films.
Lenka starred in the Australian ABC-TV drama series GP as Vesna Kapek in the 1990’s. She also hosted Cheez TV and has guest starred in other Australian TV series such as Home & Away, Wild Side, Head Start, and Spellbinder. She also starred in Australian feature films The Dish and Lost Things, and numerous theatre productions.
After adopting her first name as her sole artistic name ("Lenka" is a common Slavic girl’s name, and a common diminutive of the Slavic girl’s name "Lena"), Lenka released an eponymous album on 24 September 2008, with "The Show" chosen to be the first single release from the set. The album has thus far peaked at number 142 on the American Billboard 200.
Photo: Nick Leonard
Her vocal stylings offer a juxtaposition of catchy pop and layered, complicated world music influences. This juxtaposing is current in popular music, spreading through the internet.[citation needed] Similar layerings exist in the music of anti-folk Russian-born New York City-based musician Regina Spektor, French/Israeli/Tunisian tri-language singer-songwriter Yael Naim, and eclectic Italian violinist/mandolinist Alessandro Monti.
Lenka has performed on the late-night network television interview shows in America, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson and The Tonight Show singing "The Show" with her full band. On the week of 3 November 2008, "The Show" debuted at number 71 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart.
The beginning of 2009 saw Lenka tour extensively throughout America and Canada. On February 2nd 2009 Lenka performed her first sold out show in Toronto, Canada which she played a remix version of "The Show" as her encore.
Summer 2009 will see Lenka’s album released in Europe and Asia, with coinciding tours and festival appearances. In Vietnam, "The Show" was a huge hit and became one of the most played songs in public. In Poland, due to the huge popularity of "The Show" Lenka’s debut album was certificated gold after 10,000 copies sold.
