Happy Birthday, Signmark

Deaf Finnish rap artist Signmark (Marko Vuoriheimo) was born on this day (June 26) in Helsinki, Finland, in 1978.

image from myhelsinki.fi 

The child of deaf parents, Signmark stumbled into Hip Hop music while translating songs into sign. He felt a connection between the rapper's hand gestures and sign language. He now works with other artists who sing as he signs, becoming the first deaf rapper to sign with a major label. His first album was released in 2006. Signmark came in second in the 2009 Eurovision Song Contest.