Lebanese singer/songwriter Mika was born 40 years ago as Michael Holbrook Penniman Jr in the capital city of Beirut, and is also a composer, producer and actor.
When Mika was just one year old, his family moved to Paris, France due to the war in his country and lived there until he was 9, when they moved again, this time to London, England, following his dad’s new job.
Mika attended primary and secondary school, and also studied at the London Royal Opera House, became a chorus member and made his first stage appearance in an opera. He proceeded with his education at different schools and even managed to enter the Royal College of Music where he continued to perfect his voice as a soprano. In addition, Mika composed pop songs and went to electro and rock clubs at night.
In 2006, Mika left college and released his debut album and first single named ‘Relax, take it Easy’, followed by a second single ‘Grace Kelly’ a few months after, which was a number 1 UK hit and was also very popular internationally.
To date, Mika released 15 albums, 36 singles, 31 music videos and 9 EPs. Apart from music, he has starred in a couple of films and made guest appearances on numerous TV programmes and shows.
Mika supports several charitable institutions and together with other famous artists was engaged in many events to raise funds for different causes, particularly the Haiti earthquake victims, the London’s Air Ambulance, people with epilepsy and other critical diseases, amongst others.
During his career so far, Mika received 22 awards including 3 World Music and a Brit. For his services to music, he was honoured with the French Order of Arts and Letter in 2010 as well as the Lebanon Order of Merit in 2021.
*Image: no infringement intended. Source: Female First