Nikka Costa

Domenica "Nikka" Costa (born 4 June 1972) is an American singer whose music combines elements of pop, soul, and blues. She also had a career as a child singer starting in the early 1980s. She is the daughter of music producer Don Costa.

Nikka Costa was born in Tokyo, Japan. Her father, Don Costa, was a producer and musician. During her childhood, Costa was surrounded by famous musicians and traveled around the world with her father.

At age five, Costa recorded a single with Hawaiian singer Don Ho. Italian producers, Danny B. Besquet and Tony Renis, were working with her father on the album Don Costa Plays the Beatles when they had a brainstorm to produce an album with Nikka singing, while her father played acoustic guitar. The album was well received in Europe and Costa became known as a child star. At age 9, Costa sang with Frank Sinatra in an appearance on the lawn of the White House.

Costa's career as a recording artist under her own name started in 1981, when she recorded the song "(Out Here) On My Own" (from the movie Fame). The single reached No. 72 in Germany, No. 7 in Switzerland, No. 32 in the Netherlands, No. 13 in the Flanders region of Belgium., and No. 1 in Italy. The album Nikka Costa was released outside the U.S. in 1981. Costa toured the world. Her second album Fairy Tales (cuentos de hadas) was released in 1983. Don Costa died of a heart attack shortly after the album was recorded. The pop album Here I Am... Yes, It's Me was released to fulfill a contractual obligation in 1989.

After graduating from high school, Costa decided to move away from pop and moved toward funk and soul, becoming influenced by Motown artists.