Anna Abreu

Anna Eira Margarida Heiskari (née Mourão de Melo e Abreu; born 7 February 1990), known professionally as simply ABREU since 2017, is a Finnish singer and songwriter. Abreu first rose to fame in Finland after placing as the runner-up in the third series of the Finnish singing talent show Idols in 2007. Her music has been described as pop with influences from genres such as R&B, dance, and Latin. Since her participation in Idols, Abreu has become one of the best-selling former Idols contestants in Finland, and one of the most successful Finnish female singers. She has certified record sales surpassing 190,000 copies, which places her also among the 100 best-selling music artists of all time in Finland.

Early life Abreu was born in Helsinki to a Portuguese father, Paulo Mourão de Melo e Abreu, and a Finnish mother, Liisa. She has an elder brother named Emil. As a young child, Abreu spent some time residing in Portugal, and speaks fluent Portuguese, Spanish, and English in addition to Finnish. Her parents later separated, with her father now residing in Sintra, Portugal.

Career 2006–2007: Idols Series 3 In the summer of 2006, Abreu auditioned for the third season of the singing competition Finnish Pop Idol in the Finnish capital, Helsinki. She sang the Alicia Keys hit "Fallin'" and "Jumala" by Finnish rock band Apulanta. The contest's four judges were all impressed by the power and conviction of her voice, especially as Abreu was only sixteen years old. She passed through to the theatre rounds of the contest and then the live finals. Abreu's performances attracted heavy public support, however, during the top 5 results show, she landed in the bottom two contestants alongside Panu Larnos. Abreu survived the elimination and made it through to the live grand finale at Helsinki Ice Hall with fellow contestant Ari Koivunen, who sang exclusively in the heavy-metal genre. On 5 April 2007, Koivunen won the crown as the third Finnish Idol with 57% of the public vote, with Abreu declared as runner-up.

Idols season 3 performances and resultsWeek no.Song choiceOriginal artistResultAudition(Helsinki)"Fallin""Jumala"Alicia KeysApulantaAdvancedTheatre Round"Oon voimissain""Get the Party Started"Vicky RostiPinkSemi-finals"Broken"Seether featuring Amy LeeTop 7"Nothing Compares 2 U"Sinéad O'ConnorSafeTop 6"A Woman's Worth"Alicia KeysTop 5"The First Cut Is the Deepest"Sheryl CrowBottom 2Top 4"A Dios le Pido""Jumala"JuanesApulantaSafeTop 3"Vahva""Rakkauden haudalla"IrinaJuice LeskinenTop 2"Fallin'""I Love Rock 'n' Roll""Solta-se O Beijo""On the Top of the World"Alicia KeysJoan JettAla dos NamoradosAri KoivunenRunner-Up

2007–2008: Anna Abreu Following her participation in Idols, Abreu was signed to Sony BMG Finland and her Latino-inspired, debut single "End of Love" was released in July 2007. The song debuted and peaked at number eight on the singles chart and was accompanied by Abreu's first music video. Her self-titled debut album, Anna Abreu, was released a month later on 22 August and was certified platinum within its first week after going straight into the chart at number one and selling 30,000 copies. To date, its first week sales are among the highest in Finnish music history. The album's second single "Ivory Tower" was released in October 2007, and after initially debuting at number seventeen, the song peaked at number five in its seventh week. A third single "Are You Ready" was released for promotional purposes only. In March 2008, Anna Abreu was certified double-platinum having sold over 86,000 copies. The first single, "Hysteria", was released on 10 January 2011. before taking a break from music.

Personal life Abreu dated her fellow former Idols contestant Panu Larnos from 2007 but the relationship ended in the spring of 2009. In September of that year, she made her relationship with former model Joonas Wörlin public. The couple moved in together in November 2010 but split the following spring. In 2011, Abreu started dating Finnish professional snowboarder Lauri Heiskari and the couple became engaged in July 2012, marrying on 20 June 2013. Although Abreu officially took Heiskari as her surname, she continued to be known by her maiden name for subsequent music releases. Abreu is Catholic.

Discography

Anna Abreu (2007) Now (2008) Just a Pretty Face? (2009) Rush (2011) Greatest Hits (2012) V (2014) Sensuroimaton versio (2016) Teipillä tai rakkaudella (2019) Traagista mut maagista (2025)

Tours

Headlining Anna Abreu Live Tour (2007–2008) Now Tour (2008–2009) Just A Pretty Face? Tour (2009–2010) Pop Royalty Tour (co-headlining with Antti Tuisku) (2010) Rush Tour (2011) Over and Out Tour (2012) V Tour (2014)

As supporting act Enrique Iglesias - Euphoria Tour (2011) Finland, 6–7 April

Awards and nominations

Emma Awards

Emma Award for Female Soloist of the Year Emma Award for Domestic Artist of the Year

Emma Award for Debut Album of the Year Emma Award for Domestic Artist of the Year Emma Award for Pop Album of the Year

Emma Award for Song of the Year

Emma Award for Female Soloist of the Year Emma Award for Domestic Artist of the Year

MTV Europe Music Awards

MTV Europe Music Award for Best Finnish Act

MTV Europe Music Award for Best Finnish Act