Even in an age where Lady Gaga's flamboyant extravagance has made all her contemporaries seem dull and plaid, it is fair to say Michael "Mika" Penniman is not your average pop star.
Mika may ply his trade in self-penned bombastic, bolder-than-brash, more giddy-than-a-child-at- Christmas pop tunes, but the journey from his problematic, nomadic youth (Mika lived in Beirut, Paris and London before he was 9) to multimillion-selling, award-winning artist has been as fast as his songs are colorful.
After modest success with his 2006 debut EP, "Relax, Take it Easy," Mika's star grew quickly: named on the BBC Sound of 2007 poll, his debut single proper, "Grace Kelly," an insanely catchy, ostentatious, sugar-coated pop gem, went straight to No. 1 in the British charts, announcing Mika's arrival as not only a pop star with an impressive five-octave range, but one with a sense of high-camp style.