Christina Aguilera's birthday
American singer and songwriter Christina María Aguilera —born on December 18th, 1980, in New York City, USA— grew up to become one of the best-selling artists of her time. She was drawn to music from a young age, especially to her grandmother’s soul and blues records. Christina would sing along and she would be known around her neighborhood as the “little girl with the big voice.” Her dream was to become a singer, and she would participate in talent shows, showcasing her singing abilities. In 1991, ten-year-old Aguilera auditioned to join Disney Channel’s The Mickey Mouse Club, but was turned down due to her age. She ended up joining two years later and stayed on until its cancellation in 1994. After that, Christina moved with her mother to Japan, where she recorded her song, “All I Wanna Do,” together with Japanese singer Keizo Nakanishi.
Christina returned to the U.S in 1997, hoping to secure a contract with a record label. She sent a cover song to Walt Disney Records, who were searching for someone to perform the theme song of their next animated feature, Mulan (1998). Christina was chosen and the song “Reflection” was released in1998, performing well in charts. This song caught the attention of record label RCA, who sought to position Aguilera in the current teen pop trend. The first single of her eponymous debut album, “Genie in a Bottle,” was an instant success and made the singer famous. It was followed by two other number-one singles, “What a Girl Wants” and “Come On Over Baby (All I Want Is You)” and a Grammy Award win for Christina as Best New Artist.
In 2000, Aguilera released two more studio albums, Mi Reflejo and My Kind of Christmas. The first one included re-recorded versions of tracks on Aguilera’s debut album and several original songs, all sung in Spanish. The album was a hit and went on to win the Latin Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Album. The following year, Christina embarked on her first world tour, the Christina Aguilera in Concert. She also collaborated with Pink, Mýa, and Lil’ Kim on the song “Lady Marmalade” for the Moulin Rouge! soundtrack. Her fourth studio album, Stripped, signified a shift in her career from her teen idol identity, as she assumed more artistic control over her image and songs, co-writing most of the tracks on the album as well as serving as executive producer. Although the record sparked some controversies due to the explored risky themes, it was a commercial success and Christina was praised for her vocals.
In 2006, Christina released her fifth album, Back to Basics, in which she once more changed her image, this time inspired by figures of the Classic Hollywood era. It reached the top spot in the Billboard 200 chart, and included successful singles “Ain’t No Other Man,” “Hurt,” and “Candyman.” Aguilera’s subsequent albums, Bionic (2010) and Lotus (2012), continued to explore musical styles and themes with which the artist sought to reinvent herself. During this time, Christina made her big screen debut in Burlesque (2010), a musical in which she sang most of the soundtrack songs. She also collaborated on successful singles, Pitbull’s “Feel This Moment,” A Great Big World’s “Say Something”, and Maroon 5’s “Moves Like Jagger.” From 2011 to 2016, Aguilera served as coach on the music talent TV show The Voice, and had a recurring role in the drama series Nashville (2015). She released her eighth studio album, Liberation, in 2018, and headlined her first Las Vegas residency show, titled Christina Aguilera: The Xperience, in 2019. In 2022, Christina debuted Aguilera, her first album in Spanish since 2000, which received positive reviews by the press and went on to win two Latin Grammy Awards.
