Katri Helena released her first songs in 1963 and has since sold over 630,000 certified records, which makes her the second-best-selling female soloist in Finland behind Madonna and places her also among the top 20 best-selling music artists in the Finnish market. She has represented Finland twice in the Eurovision Song Contest: in 1979 with her song "Katson sineen taivaan" and in 1993 with "Tule luo". She also took part in the International Sopot Festival in 1969, singing "Valssi" during the Polish day.