About Nils-Aslak Valkeapää
Nils-Aslak Valkeapää, known as Áilu in the Northern Sámi language and with the stage name of Áillohaš, was a Finnish Sámi writer, musician and artist. He was one of the most internationally recognised contributors of Sámi culture. He was mostly known for his joiks and poems. He was the official provincial artist of Lapland from 1978 to 1983. He was given the Nordic Council Literature Prize in 1991 for his work called Beaivi, áhčážan. Valkeapää first came into the public eye as a performer of traditional Sámi joik and was central to the revitalisation of the genre. In 1978, Valkeapää released his jazz-joik record Sámiid eatnan duoddariid. A recording of Valkeapää performing the theme for the film Ofelaš was sampled by British musician Mike Oldfield in "Prayer for the Earth," a track on his 1994 album The Songs of Distant Earth.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.