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Biography

On 4th June 1972 Domenica Costa was born, coincidentally, in Tokyo. Daughter of the famous musician and producer Don Costa who worked with many American Stars like Paul Anka, Dinah Washington and Barbra Streisand, but most notably Frank Sinatra who was also chosen as Nikka’s Godfather. Despite beginning her life in Japan, because of an engagement of Don Costa’s Orchestra at the Tokyo Music Festival and her mum Terry Ray followed him there by lying to the airline about how advanced her pregnancy was, she was raised in Los Angeles surrounded by celebrities all the time and all the luxuries of Beverly Hills.

She got a taste of showbusiness really early in life by taking part in tv commercials by the time she was 3 and also duetting on a Christmas album with Hawaiian crooner Don Ho, produced by her dad, when she was only 5. But her real break came in 1981, still only 8, when at the end of a concert of Beatles music, her dad was giving in Milan, she got on stage and sung the song from Fame “(Out here) On my own”. The reaction of the audience was so thunderous and enthusiastic that two producers, Tony Renis and Danny B. Besquet, signed her straight away to Italian record company CGD, who recorded and released the song which went to no.1 for weeks during the summer and not only in Italy but also in other parts of Europe, South America and Israel. She also got to open as support act for a Police concert in Chile in front of 300,000 people. That same year , after having confirmed Nikka’s singing talents and appeal to mass audiences, the same team headed by her dad released a full album titled simply “Nikka Costa” including some very adult classic songs like “Someone to watch over me” or “You” a duet with Don Costa, but also some songs written with her parents like “So glad I have you” and “ Grown up world”. The album came out all over Europe, Latin America, Israel and Japan, but not in North America..her own territory, where at least she could still retreat and lead a fairly normal life like every other 9 years old girl.

On 7th May 1982 she sang with her “uncle” Frank Sinatra during a benefit concert for the Nancy Reagan “To love a child” Foundation in the grounds of the White House in Washington DC; the song also titled “To love a child” was produced by Don Costa and also came out as a single in America and Europe.

Her second album “Fairy tales”, recorded between Italy and California, was ready in 1983, with which she would have had to confirm she was not a typical child-star one-hit wonder, but right at the beginning of promoting it in January, when she arrived at Paris airport with her mum Terry coming from Rio de Janeiro where they went to launch a publicity campaign for Levi’s Jeans, she found out that her dad’s weak heart had failed and he was dead. All plans and various engagements were scrapped and the two of them got on the first plane to L.A. to say their last goodbyes. A few months later, in April, the album came out and Nikka started a promotional tour but the pressure of having to sing on TV programs without her dad and especially songs like “Stay daddy stay” was too much and at the age of 11 she retired from the music-business and public life.

It was 1989 when she came back with an album recorded for a German record label, between Hamburg and Los Angeles, produced by Christian de Walden and Steve Singer. “Here I am…yes, it’s me” an album with a very dance sound typical of other artists of that time like Debbie Gibson or Kylie Minogue, to which Nikka had no input at all and only did because she was happy to get back singing after 6 years. They even tried to launch her more in latin markets by recording the whole album sung in Spanish, titled “Loca tentacion” but neither album managed to achieve any success, also due to lack of distribution in the shops and extensive promotion. In 1990 she was back in Italy, called to take part in the Sanremo Festival singing the English version of “Vattene amore”, by Amedeo Minghi and Mietta, one of the songs in the competition which ended up in third place. With the same German production of the album of the previous year, the song “All for the love” came out as a single in Italy which promped her to do a tour of Italy that summer with another singer Stefano Sani.

Success didn’t come with this new formula and Nikka retired for the second time in her career, only 18, knowing that she would stay in the music business but next time on her own terms and tastes.

Nikka fell in love with Australian musician Justin Stanley , from funk and grunge rock group Electric Hippies, and moved to Sydney where they got married. She toured extensively across the country with different bands, like Little Mona & the Shags and Sugar Bone, with a complete change of style both musically and physically. Eventually the indie label Mushroom Records signed her to record an album and the very rocky and bluesy “Butterfly Rocket” came out, only in Australia, and earned an ARIA nomination for Best New Artist. A much deeper and meaningful album where she composed every song on it, some with her husband who was also the producer. In 1997 the same album is re-issued with a bonus live-disc where the raw and passionate Nikka is at her best.

Nikka and Justin moved back to America and in 1999 Dominique Trenier, head of Cheeba Sound, signed her up to Virgin Records and a fairly long process of writing, recording and looking for new sounds started which finally sees the light in 2001 with the new album “Everybody got their something”, including the first single “Like a feather” which had been premiered during the previous year through a tv ad for Tommy Hilfiger jeans and a sensational appearance on the Chris Rock Show in November. Despite not being an immediate hit there’s all the ingredients to make Nikka one of the greatest stars and singers. This is her first album released worldwide, available in Canada, Europe, Australia, Japan (with extra bonus track), Taiwan but most of all her own native America where up until now she was completely unknown. The main promotion has been a few TV programmes and interviews, but mainly a 40 minute live-set taken to various Festivals and small clubs around America, Europe and Japan. One of the songs on the album, Push & Pull, is also part of the soundtrack for “Blow” a movie starring Johnny Depp and Penelope Cruz, for which Nikka has also filmed a nice video, like for “Like a feather”.

The future is bright..the future is NIKKA!!!!!