In 2005, seemed unstoppable. A year after the sensations had released their defining 2004 album, , they’d exploded across Europe, supported and headed off on their biggest tour to date, playing to thousands of fans every night. On October 21 that year, the band rolled into Helsinki for what should have been a triumphant homecoming.
For the 12,000 fans gathered at Helsinki’s sold-out Hartwall Arena, it was a flawless showcase from a band fast becoming one of the biggest names in metal – but, behind the scenes, it was a different story. Unknown to fans, tensions had been rising for months and were about to boil over in the most dramatic of fashions. Immediately after the Helsinki show, Nightwish headed backstage where they presented then-vocalist with a now-infamous open letter.
.. and fired her.
The letter stated: “Nightwish is a band, it’s an emotion. To you, unfortunately, business, money and things that have nothing to do with those emotions have become much more important.” Reviewing the letter, which was published on the Nightwish website, almost 20 years later, it feels like an unnecessarily public read.
“You have said yourself that you are merely a ‘guest musician’ in Nightwish,” it continues. “Now that visit ends and we will continue Nightwish with a new female vocalist. We’re sure this is an equally big relief to you as it is for us.
We have all been feeling bad long enough.” Accusing Tarja of missing soundchecks, distancing herself from her b.
