Who is Riku Lätti

Musician/Singer-Songwriter/Producer/Composer/Screenwriter 

Composer of original Soundtracks for Television and Feature Films
2009 Hopeville.  Complete soundtrack for the miniseries.  Working with co-composer Jahn Beukes.  Hopeville won an Emmy Nomination for best international series.  Hopeville won two awards at the Rose d'Or Light Entertainment Festival in Switzerland.
2010 Songs and soundtrack for the Feature Film: Die Ongelooflike Avonture van Hanna Hoekom.  Richard Lätti winning the SAFTA for best sound design in 2011
2011 (& 2012 season 2). Wie Lê waar -  kykNet TV Series 
2013 Co-Composed with Les Javan the score for current kykNet TV series: Vlug na Egipte
2014 Compose the complete score and soundtrack for the latest Jans Rautenbach Film: Abraham, released in 2015
2019 Skemerson Feature Film (Palama Productions)
2022 Co-directed and produced the film The Voice Behind the Wall with Gideon Breytenbach, which won the Cannes Film Award 2023 for "Best African Film"

Composer and producer of numerous Albums of music, including:
Pleister vir my Nerwe (SAMA Nomination & Winner GMT Award Best Alternative Album
WOKNAKWYF! (SAMA Nomination best instrumental album)
12Hz (5 start review by Toast Coetzer – Iafrica.)
Aan't Sterre Tel (Winner GMT Award, best Male Vocal
Radio Lava (Rated in top 25 Afrikaans albums of all time: Beeld)
Hanna Hoekom (Soundtrack CD of the Feature Film)
Tussen Kontinente (tripple album, recorded and released in Belgium, The Netherlands and SA)
Janneman in die Diereryk (SAMA nomination, best children's album)
Hoop daai Boom is Oukei
Akoesties
Die Kaappunters

(many more, discography available at http://www.wasogedlyn.co.za)

Producer of music for artists
Produced commercially released records for artists like 
Peter Hoven: No Apologies  
Churchil Naude: Kroeskop vol Geraas
Bacchus Nel: Tussen Junk en Jewelry, Twee ster hotel and Ou Blou skoene
Murg: Naak
Andries Bezuidenhout: Onplaats
Hanru Niemand: Opgrawings vir ‘n Lugkasteel
Hanru Niemand: Gedaantespel
Brain Cloete: Oukie van Namakwaland
Die Kaalkop Waarheid: In die Kaap
And numerous Wasgoedlyn Compilation albums (vol 1-4)

Creator and Director
2014 Created the Television Series Wasgoedlyn.  Season 1 comprises 13 24 minute episodes of a musical documentary type show.  3 Seasons completed and viewed on kykNet & VIA (DSTV).
2021 The Voice behind the Wall/Die Ongetemde Stem documentary film, co-directed and co-produced by Gideon Breytenbach.  In 2023 the film won the Cannes Film Award for best African Film

Screenwriter
Writer of the Feature Film Gerugte van Olie
Writer of Broadway-style musical Blood and Wine
Written the film Oscar & Olivia
Co-Authored with JackieLätti, musical theatre script for Die Pop aan die Touwtje

Riku Lätti – Biography Riku Lätti is a singer-songwriter, producer, writer, who, once upon a time, studied philosophy at WITS. He then embarked on a career as an IT specialist, and, after a few years in the corporate world, he succumbed to the allure of the financially unstable life of a musician. To try to box Riku's music into a specific genre would be negligible, because, just like the man, his music is eclectic and encompasses a variety of styles, depending on the mood that he wants to create, always staking out new musical territory. He uses various instruments and anything else at his disposal. From chirping birds, whistling kettles, wooden floors, a toothbrush, raindrops, to the famous hekkie (gate), which he put to creative use on one of his outstanding tracks, on the album Radio Lava. His songs are uniquely innovative, blending many disparate elements imaginatively. He has co-produced the soundtracks of the TV-series' Hopeville (Nominated for an Emmy, Winner of Rose D'or) and Wie lê Waar (kykNET) with Jahn Beukes, and Vlug na Egipte with Leslie Javan. He also produced the soundtrack and sound design for the feature film Die Ongelooflike Avonture van Hanna Hoekom (for which he won a SAFTA) and most recently the critically acclaimed Jans Rautenbach film, Abraham.

Riku has released dozens of albums which he has written, recorded and produced. He has won numerous awards including the GMT best male vocal for the album Aan't sterre tel, plus his album Radio Lava was considered among the top 25 Afrikaans albums of all time by Die Beeld and singled out by journalist, producer and author Deon Maas, as one of the three most important Afrikaans albums ever made.

More recently Riku was called the David Attenborough of the music industry. He seeks out musicians in their natural habitats and then records them right there, without pretense. No nonsense. Just raw, honest music, captured, and then showcased as a beautiful protest to the current state of the music industry in South Africa. This musical movement is well known under the title Die Wasgoedlyn.

At the 2021 Woordfees, the controversial documentary, Die Ongetemde Stem, of  which Riku, with Gideon Breytenbach, was co-director and producer.  The International cut The Voice Behind the Wall, won the award for Best Documentary Feature at the Angeles Film Festival in Los Angeles.  Riku and Jackie Lätti recently completed the musical, Die Wyn Bloei Rooi, and it is currently being workshopped as a television series. Riku's aim is not to create pretentious art, but to create beautiful things. His music and lyrics does not just tell his story, but also empathetically conveys the stories of other people and places, whether imaginary or real. In creating he becomes inspired and an inspiration to others.

Riku Lätti is 'n sanger-liedjieskrywer, vervaardiger, skrywer en filmmaker. Sy musiek is haas onmoontlik om in te hok, want, net soos die man, is sy musiek eklekties en 'n omarming van 'n groot hoeveelheid style, afhangende van die atmosfeer wat hy wil skep. Hy is die mede-skepper van die klankbane van die TV-reeks Hopeville (genomineer vir 'n Emmy, en wenner van die Rose d'Or award) en Wie lê Waar en Vlug na Egipte. Hy is ook verantwoordelik vir die klankbane van die vollengte films Die Ongelooflike Avonture van Hanna Hoekom (waarvoor Riku 'n SAFTA gewen het), die Jans Rautenbach-film, Abraham - oorspronklike musiek uit Abraham, asook Skemerson, waarvoor hy vir ‘n SAFTA benoem is.

Saam met Gideon Breytenbach is Riku is die mede-regisseur van die opspraakwekkende dokumentêre film Die Ongetemde Stem, wat by die Woordfees 2021 vrygestel is.  Die film het “best documentary Feature” gewen by die Angeles Film Festival in Los Angeles.  Die film wen die Cannes Film Awards - Best African Film 2023.

Riku en Jackie Lätti  het die musiekblyspel, Die Pop aan die Toutjie, onlangs klaar geskryf en getoonset en dit word tans as ‘n televisiereeks verwerk.

Riku het al dosyne albums vrygestel, geskryf, opgeneem en vervaardig waarvoor hy talle akkolades en pryse ontvang het.  Riku is ook die stigterslid van Die Wasgoedlyn,'n innoverende beweging wat  tot 'n tv-reeks verwerk is. Hy soek kreatiewe skeppers op in hul natuurlike habitat en neem hulle op. Geen pretensie. Net rou, eerlike, musiek, opgeneem en verfilm ken tentoongestel nie net as 'n beeldskone protes teen die stand van die hedendaagse musiek-industrie in Suid-Afrika, maar ook om ‘n klein biblioteek te vestig sodat al die ander alternatiewe Afrikaanse musieke nie verlore maar gaan nie, maar ‘n ewige lewe kan hê.