Niclas Benjamin Peltonen (born 15 April 1997),[1] known mononymously as Benjamin, is a Finnish singer and songwriter. He originally gained recognition through his Instagram profile, created in 2012.[2][3][4] In May 2014, Peltonen signed a record deal with Warner Music Finland.[5]
Benjamin | |
|---|---|
.png) Peltonen in 2020 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Niclas Benjamin Peltonen |
| Born | 15 April 1997 Kaarina, Finland |
| Genres | |
| Occupation(s) |
|
| Instrument(s) | Vocals |
| Years active | 2012–present |
| Labels | Warner Music Finland |
Career
2014–2017: Square One and Fingerprints
Peltonen's first single "Underdogs" was released on 8 September 2014.[4] It peaked at number ten on the official singles chart in Finland.[6] In March 2015 the song was added to the playlist of the Spanish radio channel Los 40 Principales.[7] Peltonen released his second single "Unbreakable" on 19 December 2014.[8] His first extended play Square One was released in May 2015, including both prior singles and three new songs, including third single "Young and Restless".[7][9][10]
A 20-part documentary series about Peltonen entitled Naked Diary: Benjamin Peltonen, was aired on Yle Areena in the spring of 2015.[11] A longer documentary of the same name was aired on Yle TV2 on 3 May 2015.[11][12]
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Peltonen announced a brand new single called "Body" for release on 4 March 2016,[13] which will precede his debut album. Benjamin's debut album Fingerprints was released in April 2016, including all previous singles, and the entire Square One EP. It debuted on the Finnish album chart at number 17[14] and the Spanish album chart at number 3.[15] "Man on the Moon", featuring Spanish girl group Sweet California, was the fifth and final single released from the album on 8 July 2016.[16] He released the single "Bad Luck Love" on 8 March 2017.[17]
2018–present: Transition to music in Finnish and Someveteraani
In 2018, Peltonen started releasing music in Finnish. The first release "Naarmuja" featuring Finnish rapper IBE was released on 10 August 2018.[18][19] Another single "Juon sut pois" was unveiled on 16 November 2017. Its official music video, directed by Karim Saheb and shot in Germany, premiered a day later.[20][21][22] More singles followed through 2019: "Tanssin yksin" on 22 February,[23][24] "Orgasmi" on 7 June 2020[25] and "Näytä mulle ne" on 23 August.[26]
In 24 January 2020, a song about his parents' divorce "Kaksi kotia" premiered along a short prologue video and an upcoming album was teased.[27][28] Preceded by singles "WWW" and "TikTok", Peltonen's first album in Finnish, Someveteraani, was released on 25 September 2020.[29][30][31][32][33]
On 11 January 2023, Peltonen was announced as one of seven participants in Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2023, the Finnish national selection for the Eurovision Song Contest 2023.[34] His entry "Hoida mut" was co-written with Atso Soivio and Iivari Suosalo, and was released on 13 January 2023.[34] In the final, he finished in seventh place with 66 points (32 points from the televote and 34 points from the juries).[35]
On 11 December 2023, he was revealed as one of the hosts of Uuden Musiikin Kilpailu 2024, alongside Pilvi Hämäläinen and Viivi Pumpanen.[36]
Personal life
Benjamin came out as gay during a live TV concert at Helsinki Pride in July 2021.[37]
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| FIN [38] | SPA [39] | ||
| Fingerprints |
| 17 | 3 |
| Someveteraani |
| 21 | — |
Extended plays
| Title | EP details |
|---|---|
| Square One |
|
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Certifications | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIN [38][40] | ||||
| "Underdogs" | 2014 | 10 | None | Square One and Fingerprints |
| "Unbreakable" | — | |||
| "Young and Restless" | 2015 | — | ||
| "Body" | 2016 | — | Fingerprints | |
| "Man on the Moon" (featuring Sweet California) | — | |||
| "Bad Luck Love" | 2017 | — | Non-album singles | |
| "Naarmuja" (featuring Ibe) | 2018 | 3 |
| |
| "Juon sut pois" | 2 | |||
| "Tanssin yksin" | 2019 | 17 | None | |
| "Orgasmi" | 20 |
| ||
| "Näytä mulle ne" | 20 | None | ||
| "Kaksi kotia" | 2020 | — | ||
| "WWW" | — | Someveteraani | ||
| "TikTok" | — | |||
| "Kunnes sammutaan" (with Vesta) | 2021 | 19 | Non-album singles | |
| "N-Y-T" | 2022 | — | ||
| "Gay" | 10 | |||
| "Hoida mut" | 2023 | 7 | ||
| "Minä-Minä-Maa" | 30 |