Mýa

From Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Mýa
Mýa in 2009
Mýa in 2009
Background information
Birth nameMýa Marie Harrison
Born (1979-10-10) October 10, 1979 (age 44)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • producer
  • dancer
  • designer
  • actress
InstrumentsVocals
Years active1996–present
Labels
Websitewww.myamya.com

Mýa Marie Harrison (born October 10, 1979) (/ˈm.ə/)[1][2] is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress. She first became famous in 1998 with her debut album Mýa. She is best known for the 2001 cover of the famous R&B song "Lady Marmalade".

Early life and career beginnings[change | change source]

"The turning point was when I saw Savion Glover in 'Tap'. I watched the videotape and studied steps on the kitchen floor."—Mýa,The Washington Post[3]

Mýa is a native of Washington, D.C. She is one of three children. Her father, Sherman, was an African-American musician and singer. He played in several bands near where they lived. Her Italian-American mother, Theresa, worked as an accountant.[4] As a child, Mýa would pretend she was Michael Jackson and would sing into a wooden spoon and pretended it was a microphone.[3]

Mýa sometimes was bullied because of her ethnic background. She would say

There was a time in my life when I wasn't popular and accepted by kids in school. I was made fun of with braces and kinky hair, and being from a multicultural family, etcetera... And it really hurts when you're that age, but later when you get something of your own or you get involved in activities like a sport, you begin to be accepted for what you do, and your personality and who you are, instead of your clothes and how you look and the name designer brands you have on.

[3]

Discography[change | change source]

Tours[change | change source]

Opening Act
Headliner
Supporting
  • 2007: BET Black College Tour (various artists)[8]
  • 2014: Full Frequency Tour (Sean Paul's Australian tour in November)[9]

Filmography[change | change source]

Film
Year Title Role Notes
1999 In Too Deep Loretta
2002 Chicago Mona
2004 Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights Lola Martinez
2004 Shall We Dance? Vern's Fiancee
2005 Cursed Jenny Tate
2006 Swap Meet Katrina Direct-to-video
2007 The Metrosexual Jessica Direct-to-video
2008 Cover Cynda Direct-to-video
2008 Love For Sale Kiely Direct-to-video
2009 Bottleworld Bree Direct-to-video
2010 The Penthouse Mitra Direct-to-video
2011 Sunset Strip (documentary) Herself
2011 The Heart Specialist Valerie In select theaters and video-on-demand
Television
Year Title Role Notes
1999 Sister, Sister Herself FreakNik episode #115
2001 2GE+HER: The Series Herself Episode: "Lyrics" (2.4)
2001 Volcano High Yu Cha-i MTV movie, English dub
2002 Haunted Voodoo Priestess Episode: "Abby" (1.4)
2003 Punk'd Herself Episode 2.3
2004 1-800-Missing Kira Episode: "Pop Star" (2.10)
2005 NCIS Samantha "Jade" King Episode: "Pop Life" (2.16)
2006 Love Monkey Herself Episode: "Coming Out" (uncredited; 1.8)
2007 Yo Gabba Gabba Herself Movie
2007 Yo Gabba Gabba Herself Episode: "Friends" (1.7)
2008 Secret Talents of the Stars Herself/contestant Episode 1.1
2009 Dancing with the Stars Herself/contestant Runner-up
2011 WWE Raw Herself "The Rock's Birthday Bash"; sang "Happy Birthday" to The Rock
2014 Bermuda Tentacles Lt. Plummer SyFy Channel movie (credited as Mya Harrison)

References[change | change source]

  1. "FACTS". myamya.com. Archived from the original on 2017-09-05. Retrieved 2014-05-12.
  2. "Rainbow bright: Mya celebrates her 32nd birthday in a day-glow bandage dress". Daily Mail. 2011-10-21. Retrieved 2012-08-30.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 "For 18-year-old singer, it's all about a hit single". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 2015-10-18. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
  4. "Mya Biography (1979?-)". Filmreference.com.
  5. Ham, Dorian S. (3 October 1998). "Wooo-Haaa! Smokin' Grooves live hip-hop tour rocks Polaris". The Lantern.
  6. Samuels, Anita M. (Apr 25, 1998). "Boyz II Men Announce U.S. Tour". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc.
  7. Hiatt, Brian. "Pretenders, Mya, Beth Orton, Queen Latifah Set For Lilith". Viacom International Inc.
  8. "BET Networks Takes the Ultimate Study Break on the Road With the 2007 BET Black College Tour". Black Entertainment Television. Archived from the original on 2014-10-21. Retrieved 2015-11-24.
  9. Gill, Lauren. "Mya Joins Sean Paul's 2014 Australian Tour". Furst Media. Archived from the original on 2016-04-27. Retrieved 2015-11-24.

Other websites[change | change source]

Awards and achievements
Preceded by
Gilles Marini & Cheryl Burke
Dancing with the Stars (US) runner up
Season 9 (Fall 2009 with Dmitry Chaplin)
Succeeded by
Evan Lysacek & Anna Trebunskaya