Christina Maria Aguilera (born December 18, 1980, in Staten Island, New York) is an American popular music singer and songwriter. She is most often recognized by her superior vocal ability and unorthodox fashion sense. Her vocal skills have been compared to those of singers such as Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston, making her one of the most prominent recording artists of her generation. She has achieved four No. 1 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, as well as two Top Five albums and four Grammy Awards in the United States.

Christina Aguilera was born in Staten Island, part of New York City, but grew up primarily in Wexford, Pennsylvania (just outside Pittsburgh), after living in various places around the world. Her father, Fausto Aguilera, is a U.S. Army sergeant of Ecuadoran descent, and her mother, Shelly Loraine Fidler, is a Spanish translator from Newfoundland, Canada, and of remote Irish descent. Christina's parents met while Fausto was serving at Earnest Harmon Air Force Base in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Since Christina was able to talk, she set a goal to become a professional singer. As a child she performed at block parties and in talent competitions—defeating opponents with little effort. Christina soon gained media attention, and was known to some as "the little girl with the big voice".

Throughout her youth in Pennsylvania, Aguilera sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before Pittsburgh Steelers football and Pittsburgh Pirates baseball games. In 1989, she competed on Star Search, but failed to win. Her first major role in entertainment came in 1993 when she joined the Disney Channel's variety show The New Mickey Mouse Club. Her co-stars included Britney Spears, as well as Justin Timberlake, JC Chasez (who went on to join NSYNC) and Keri Russell (who would go on to become the star of Felicity).

Aguilera's first hit single was "All I Wanna Do," which was a collaborative effort recorded in Japan with Japanese pop sensation Keizo Nakanishi. In 1997, Aguilera competed in an international singing contest at the Golden Stag Festival in Transylvania, Romania, where she shared the stage with Sheryl Crow and Diana Ross. In 1998, after proving she could sing the High "E" note above middle "C" during audition, she was selected to perform the song "Reflection" for the Disney animated production of Mulan (1998). The music video promoting the film featured a young Aguilera with bobbed hair. It was her first music video.