Misia

MISIA, born Misaki Ito (伊藤美咲 Ito Misaki) on July 7, 1978, in Fukuoka, Japan, is a female Japanese R&B/Pop singer. She is not to be confused with the Portuguese fado singer Mísia. MISIA made her debut in 1998 after being spotted at an audition in May '97. As a child, she was introduced to gospel and R&B music, these genres having the greatest influence over her own career. She started voice training at the age of 15. One of her claims to fame is her 5 octave range and her ability to use the whistle register, which is put to good use in her songs. To date she has released 8 studio albums, and though her popularity isn't as huge as before, she commands a decent following. Moreover, she is one of Japan's most popular live performers, with each of her concerts being sold out. While it's common to find MISIA described as an R&B artist her music has a more soulful, even bluesy, quality to it, something her voice complements well.