CHRISTINA AGUILERA
Teen pop diva Christina Aguilera was born December 18, 1980 in Staten Island, NY; the careers of her military father and musician mother ensured that the family traveled the globe before finally settling in Wexford, PA, where the youngster first began performing in area talent shows. At age eight, Aguilera appeared on the syndicated television series Star Search; four years later, she landed a regular role on Disney's The New Mickey Mouse Club, co-starring with future luminaries including Britney Spears, 'N Sync's JC Chasez and Justin Timberlake, and Felicity's Keri Russell. Aguilera's first pop music success came in Japan thanks to "All I Wanna Do, " a smash duet with Keizo Nakanishi; she returned to the U.S. in 1998 to record the song "Reflection" for the soundtrack of the animated film Mulan, that same week signing to RCA. Releasing her self-titled debut album the following year, Aguilera topped the pop charts with the single "Genie in a Bottle." Christina Aguilera sold over 10 million copies worldwide in just under a year and turned its namesake into a superstar. She followed this successs with performances at the Super Bowl XXXIII Halftime Show and for President Clinton, and won a Best New Artist Grammy. Just over a year after she released her debut album, Aguilera released Mi Reflejo, a collection of Spanish-language songs, as well as My Kind Of Christmas, a holiday album. ~ Jason Ankeny, All Music Guide (courtesy of getmusic.com)