Lenka (born Lenka Kripac) is an Australian singer and songwriter, known for her song "The Show" from her album Lenka, which was in advertisements, including for Old Navy. Previously known in Australia as an actress, she has appeared in Australian television serials and feature films.
Early life
The daughter of a jazz musician father who had immigrated to Australia from then-Czechoslovakia and an Australian schoolteacher mother, Lenka was born and raised in "the bush", until age seven when her family moved to Sydney, where she received her schooling and music training, and started work as a musician.
Acting
As a teenager Lenka studied acting at the Australian Theatre For Young People, where she trained with actress Cate Blanchett at the school. Lenka starred in the Australian ABC-TV drama series GP as Vesna Kapek in the 1990s. She also hosted Cheez TV and has guest starred in other Australian TV series including as Home And Away, Wild Side, Head Start, and Spellbinder. She appeared in Australian feature films The Dish and Lost Things, as well as in theatre productions
Solo career
After adopting her first name as her sole artistic name ("Lenka" is a common Slavic girl's name, and a common diminutive of the Slavic girl's name "Elena"), Lenka released her eponymous debut album on 24 September 2008, with "The Show" chosen to be the first single release from the set.[7] The album peaked at number 142 on the US Billboard 200.[8]
Lenka creates paper art type of stop-motion animated music videos for each of her singles with James Gulliver Hancock, a visual artist from Australia.[3] The childlike appearance to all her music videos is done on purpose by the duo.[3] Her vocal stylings are a juxtaposition of pop and layered, complicated influences.
She provided vocals on two tracks ("Addicted" and "Sunrise") on German artist Schiller's album Atemlos, released in Germany on 12 March 2010.
