2025 Artists
The Sky is Crying (Sweden)
They are an innovative blues trio from Gothenburg, Sweden. They focus on vaudeville blues and classic blues from the great female singers and composers with a touch of rhythm & blues and delta blues here and there. The band takes joy in finding unique instrument combinations, such as vocals, trombone and bass, which they use to bring out unique, emotional interpretations, always respecting the history of the blues. The trio consists of Kristin Ladström (vocals), Gustav Davidsson (trombone, piano, vocals) and Marcus Fenn (electric bass, acoustic guitar, banjo, vocals).
Check out their social media at:
Helge Tallqvist Band with Queen Fatima Kortesoja (Finland)
Helge Tallqvist is one of the foremost blues harmonica artists in the Nordics. He has recorded numerous albums, including a tribute to George “Harmonica” Smith. He regularly plays in Helsinki and frequently highlights female singers of the blues. One such is Queen Fatima (Fatima Kortesoja) who will be joining at The Grind. Fatima is a dark-voiced and soulful singer. She was a semi-finalist in the 2011 Finnish Idols and performed in 2011-2012 as the soloist of Helge Tallqvist's then band. In addition to this, Fatima is also the soloist of the Half Past Never Band.
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Read more about Helge Tallqvist on his website https://www.helgetallqvist.com/
Jantso Jokelin (Finland)
Award-winning blues singer, harmonica player and resonator guitar master Jantso Jokelin is one of the most acclaimed solo newcomers in Finnish folk blues. In Jokelin's intimate songs, evening turns into night, memories blend with visions and forgotten gods draw a silver line on the horizon. Influences from West African music, hip hop or the Balkans are mixed into the elegant blues. Jokelin is the Finnish street music champion, placed third in the world's largest harmonica competition in Trossingen, Germany in 2009 and wrote the first Finnish-language general work dedicated to the harmonica. Jokelin's recent solo debut album Spark of Luck has been an international critical success.
Constantine & the Call Operators (Finland)
Constantine & the Call Operators have a vintage sound, taken from the best American music of the 1950s and '60s. Proving music's global reach, this band originates from Helsinki, Finland, not that there's any tell in their music. Instead their self-titled album sounds like a collection of lost or forgotten hits from some of music's golden eras. Constantine & The Call Operators, a quartet adventuring in the world of danceable soul and rhythmic blues, was founded in Helsinki in 2012. The band released their debut album in 2021. In addition to performing on Finnish stages, the band has played gigs at festivals and clubs also in Sweden, Denmark, Germany and Belgium.
Konstantin Kovalev (vocals & guitar), Harri Taittonen (organ & piano), Tyko Haapala (drums) and Jaska Prepula (bass)
Little Willie Mehto (Finland)
Ville "Little Willie" Mehto is a Finnish blues singer, guitarist, and harmonica player. His love of blues music was born early, after listening to vinyl roots music records with family. Mehto has recently represented Finland at the European Blues Challenge in 2024 and at the International Blues Challenge 2025 in Memphis, Tennessee.
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Check out his social media for photos from his US trip to the IBC!
Our DJs
Lucía Mendoza (Spain)
Lucía Mendoza, an international Blues dance teacher and DJ from Madrid (1988), has danced her whole life and a degree in performing arts. She started dancing Swing and Blues in 2013 and teaching in 2017. Her love for music led her to DJ at dance socials from 2017, and after completing a professional DJ course in 2018, began working at events in Rome and Valencia. Now, she frequently DJs at Blues festivals and enjoys connecting the crowd and curating the perfect musical experience.
Bruno Baker (France)
Bruno from Paris, France shares and spreads Blues by any means necessary since his enriching and moving road trip in the Deep South (Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee) five years ago. He is now a DJ, Dancer, Actor, Competitor, Parties and Events Organizer and Facilitator of Blues Connection Workshops mixing Dance and History of the Blues.
Originally from Martinique, French West Indies, and raised on Caribbean music by his mother he creates his DJ Sets like a good Creole recipe. He mixes the different flavors of Blues, and adds spices like Gospel, Jazz, Rhythm And Blues, Soul & Funk to spice it all up and explore the fabulous spectrum of black American music which moves his body and soul since over five decades now.
He can't wait to discover The Grind and Helsinki to share "Peace And Blues".
Ari "DJ Arigoo" Koskela (Finland)
DJ Ari "DJ AriGoo" Koskela, a crowd favorite at Grind 2024, returns for 2025!
Ari fell in love with blues music in the early1980s after purchasing John Lee Hooker’s 'Real Folk Blues.' While he later expanded his taste to include various genres, his passion for blues remained. Since discovering Boogie Woogie and Swing dances 2003, he has DJed at numerous local events. His passion for blues was reignited in 2015, and now he aims to keep his sets 'bluesy' while incorporating funky and jazzy tunes, always on the lookout for fresh versions of blues-dance standards.