Mika

Michael Penniman Jr., known as Mika, is a Lebanese-American-British singer-songwriter, musician and actor, born on 18 August 1983 in Beirut, Lebanon.

His first album, Life in Cartoon Motion (2007), is certified diamond in France, with more than 1,400,000 copies sold, and was the best-selling album of 2007. Worldwide, it sold 5.5 million copies. His second album, The Boy Who Knew Too Much (2009), sold almost 400,000 copies in France and earned him a triple platinum disc.

In 2011, he released the single Elle me dit. The song was a new hit. It is taken from his next album and is sung in French, a first for Mika. In September 2012, he returned with his third album, The Origin of Love. In 2012, the album was certified platinum in France. His fourth album, No Place in Heaven, came out in 2015, with four tracks in French; the following year, it was certified platinum in France and platinum in Italy.

In 2019, he released his fifth album, My Name Is Michael Holbrook.

From 2016 to 2018, he hosted his own programme in Italy, Stasera casa Mika. From 2014, he was one of the coaches on the television show The Voice France, and brought Kendji Girac to victory the same year. He also helped launch Fréro Delavega and Arcadian. He left the show at the end of season 8 in 2019, and returned in 2021 for an all-stars season, then in 2024 for season 13. He was also a coach on the Italian version of X Factor in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2020 and 2021.

The Italian broadcaster Rai chose him to host Eurovision 2022, held in Turin on 10, 12 and 14 May, alongside Alessandro Cattelan and Laura Pausini. On 13 February 2026, he was chosen as president of the Victoires de la Musique, for which he is hosting the opening show.