Olivia Merilahti
Finnish-French singer (born 1982)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Olivia Merilahti is a Finnish-French singer and composer, best known for being the frontwoman of the musical duo The Dø. Her work has been compared to that of Björk, whom she cites as a major influence.[1] Merilahti was born to a French father and a Finnish mother.[2] She primarily uses English in music, which she learned at an early age.
Finnish is my intimate language; I speak Finnish with my mum and I've been living in France for most of my life, so it's been my secret language. So these different languages play different roles in my life, and English has always been the musical one.[3]
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25 February 1982
Olivia Merilahti | |
|---|---|
Merilahti performing with The Dø in 2015 | |
| Background information | |
| Also known as | Prudence |
| Born | Olivia Bouyssou 25 February 1982 Paris, France |
| Genres | Indie rock, folk rock |
| Occupations | Singer |
| Instruments | Vocals, guitar, keyboards |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Formerly of | The Dø (2005-2020) |
Having studied music in Paris and Helsinki, Merilahti gravitated to rock music, then jazz and electronic music. In 2004, during the writing of music from the movie Empire of the Wolves, she met Dan Levy, with whom she formed French indie rock band The Dø.
The duo released 3 albums between 2008 and 2014, toured the world and got awarded best rock album at Les Victoires de la Musique in 2015. They were several times quoted by Billie Eilish as her favourite band.
In 2018 Olivia got her first role in a movie alongside Mathieu Kassovitz, "Sparring" by Samuel Jouy. She composed the original score.
She released her first LP under the name Prudence, "Beginnings" in 2021, collaborating with various producers such as Xavier de Rosnay from Justice.
Between 2022 and 2025, Olivia collaborated with many artists such as Kavinsky, Etienne de Crecy or French 79. She also worked as a producer for many French acts such as Louane and Yoa.
Olivia is currently producing her solo album under her own name.
Discography
Studio albums
Extended plays
Singles
As lead artist
| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Never With U" | 2020 | Be Water |
| "Passionfruit" (Drake cover) | non-album single | |
| "Offenses" | Be Water | |
| "Freed from Desire" (Gala cover) | 2021 | non-album single |
| "Good Friends" | Beginnings | |
| "Here & Now" | ||
| "Your Power" (Billie Eilish cover) | The Submarine Files | |
| "La Nuit N'en Finit Plus" (Petula Clark cover) | non-album single | |
As featured artist
Filmography
| Year | Title | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Empire of the Wolves | Co-composed with Luca De' Medici, Grégory Fougères, Dan Levy, Pascal Morel, and Samuel Narboni |
| The Passenger | Co-composed with Dan Levy | |
| Wild Camp | Co-composed with Dan Levy, Nicolas Baby, and Philippe Neil | |
| 2017 | Sparring | Also portrays Marion Landry |
| 2023 | Aspergirl | 10 episodes |
