Christina Milian facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Christina Milian
Milian in 2016
Born	Christina Flores (1981-09-26) September 26, 1981 (age 43) Jersey City, New Jersey, U.S.
Other names	Christina Flores-Nash
Occupation	Actress songwriter singer
Years active	1996–present
Spouse(s)	The-Dream ​ ​ (m. 2009; div. 2011)​ M. Pokora ​ (m. 2020)​
Children	3
Awards	Full list
Musical career
Origin	Waldorf, Maryland
Genres	R&B pop hip hop dance
Instruments	Vocals
Labels	Milianheiress Music Def Jam Def Soul Murder Inc. Interscope Island MySpace Young Money

Christina Milian (/ˌmɪliˈɑːn/ mil-EE-ahn; née Flores, born September 26, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Born in Jersey City, New Jersey, but raised in Waldorf, Maryland, she signed a contract with Murder Inc. and Def Soul. Milian made her recording debut on American rapper Ja Rule's 2000 single, "Between Me and You", which peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Under Island Records, she released her 2001 debut single "AM to PM", which became a US Billboard Hot 100 top 40 single and a top 3 hit on the UK Singles Chart.

In 2002, she performed the theme song "Call Me, Beep Me!", for the Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible. Following a series of delays, her first album, Christina Milian, was only released internationally in 2002, where it charted moderately. Her second album, It's About Time (2004), spawned the number 5 Billboard Hot 100 and UK number 2 hit "Dip It Low" (featuring Fabolous and Shawnna). Her third album, So Amazin' (2006) yielded the US top 40 single and number 4 UK hit, "Say I" (featuring Jeezy). She parted ways with Island following its release and signed with MySpace and Interscope Records in 2008 to release the ballad "Us Against the World". She then signed with The-Dream's Radio Killa Records, but parted ways without any releases. In 2012, she signed with Lil Wayne's Young Money Entertainment.

As an actress, her first lead film role was in the 2003 film Love Don't Cost a Thing, and she subsequently had lead roles in Be Cool and the 2006 horror film Pulse. Milian had a minor role in Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, and starred as the lead role in the straight-to-DVD film Bring It On: Fight to the Finish. In 2008, Milian portrayed Carmen Mendez in the video game Need for Speed: Undercover. Milian has also starred in the 2010 ABC Family Original Movie Christmas Cupid, alongside Ashley Benson and Chad Michael Murray. From 2015 to 2016, she starred in the sitcom Grandfathered. She is an entrepreneur and co-founded and co-owns Beignet Box, a dessert shop in the Los Angeles area.

Early life

Milian was born in Jersey City, New Jersey, and is of Afro-Cuban descent. Her parents are Don Flores and Carmen Milian.

Flores changed her name and adopted her mother's maiden name (Milian) in the hopes of landing a wider range of acting roles. The oldest of three sisters, including Danielle and Elizabeth, she moved with her family to Waldorf, Maryland, soon after her birth. Milian was four years old when she showed an interest in show business, and when her family realized that she was a talented actress, she became determined to pursue an entertainment career. As a child, Milian was "very imaginative and very creative", and watching television and listening to the radio became her life. They inspired her to have fun, and she convinced her parents that she "did not want to be inside the TV", although it took some time to convince them. By the time she was nine years old, Milian had begun auditioning with local talent agencies, shot commercials for Wendy's and Honeycomb, and played the lead role in the musical Annie. Milian's mother noticed her daughter's potential and left her husband and moved to Los Angeles with her three daughters when Milian was 13 years old. Her father had to stay in Maryland and divorced her mother soon after the move.

When Milian moved to Los Angeles, her only desire was to be an actress. She always wanted to be in the record business, but did not know how to obtain a recording contract. During this time, she was a host for Disney Channel's series Movie Surfers, by the name of Tina. After living in Los Angeles for six months, Milian moved into the same apartment complex as songwriter and producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins. Jerkins heard about Milian from a boy band he was working with and once he heard her sing, they began working together. For a year and a half, Milian went into a studio every day and worked with Jerkins, which is where she started meeting people in the record business. She began writing songs at the age of 17 because she needed a demo to help her obtain a recording contract. According to Milian, every time she recorded a song, the producer would refuse to give her the demo, or would write lyrics that she did not agree with. She felt that she had to write a song, record a demo, and send it out on her own.

Career

2000–2002: Christina Milian, record deal and acting debut

Milian made her first professional musical appearance on rapper Ja Rule's second studio album Rule 3:36 (2000), performing vocals on the song "Between Me and You". The song was released as the album's lead single in 2000, peaking at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, and in the top 30 of the UK Singles Chart. Milian co-wrote and performed vocals for the track "Play" for Jennifer Lopez's album J. Lo (2001), and co-wrote "Same Ol' Same Ol'", the second single from girl group PYT's debut album PYT (Down with Me) (2001).

Milian's collaboration with Ja Rule led to a record deal with Def Soul Records, prompted by his affiliation with Murder Inc. Records, an imprint that was distributed through Def Jam, the parent label of Def Soul Records. She travelled to Sweden and recorded her self-titled debut album. The album was released on October 9, 2001, in the UK, peaking at number 23 and selling a total of 101,986 copies. Internationally, the album peaked at number 36 in the Netherlands, and number 98 in Sweden. The album's domestic release was canceled primarily because of the September 11 attacks; but it was released outside of the US on October 9, 2001. Two singles were taken from the album, "AM to PM" and "When You Look at Me", both of which charted worldwide. A music video for the track "Get Away" was filmed in Paris, although it was not officially released as a single.

The critical response to the album was mixed to generally positive. Imran Ahmed of the New Musical Express predicted that based on the record, "genius can't be more than a few albums away". Contrastingly, entertainment.ie writer Andrew Lynch suggested that Milian needed original ideas. Milian believed that the public expected "a certain thing" from her when she first appeared with Ja Rule, however she wanted to record the type of music she was signed to do. She said that "AM to PM" was a "cool record," but it was not what the public expected. Milian approached the executives at her record company, Island Def Jam, and "cussed them all out", telling them that they were not listening to her. She felt that she had gained their respect by explaining that she was serious about her musical career. In the following years, she was featured on the track "It's All Gravy", a duet with British rapper Romeo, which was a UK top ten hit; provided the theme song for the hit Disney Channel animated series Kim Possible, "Call Me, Beep Me!"; and collaborated with Hilary Duff on Duff's Christmas album Santa Claus Lane (2002), on the song "I Heard Santa on the Radio".

Although Milian is best known for her singing career, she originally wanted to be an actress. When asked whether she prefers singing or acting, Milian said that "they're both my passion. But, honestly, if I had to choose, it would probably be my music. I love writing. I love listening. I love the challenge of it." Milian has also stated that she loves "performing live on the stage ... above all else. It's my favorite."

Milian's first major acting role was offered by the Disney Channel to join The Mickey Mouse Club; however, she did not accept and opted to star as a reporter on Movie Surfers. During this time, she had minor roles in film and television, including Sister, Sister, Smart Guy, The Steve Harvey Show, Get Real, The Wood and American Pie. In 2002, Milian was appointed the host of the live competitive music series Becoming Presents: Wannabe on MTV, where she met director Joseph Kahn. Kahn suggested she audition for a lead role in the film Torque. Her audition was successful and she played a supporting role in the film. She was subsequently cast in her first lead role in Love Don't Cost a Thing.

Milian has been described as a role model to young girls; she has said that there are a lot of people who young girls look up to, but "at the end of the day you have to be your own person and love yourself." Milian worked with the Children Uniting Nations charity, in which she was a big sister to foster children, and says her favorite charity is the Penny Lane Foundation. Milian was awarded with a humanitarian award at The Reign fundraiser from the Elton John AIDS Foundation for being a role model for young children. Milian said, "I've never been rewarded that way and never been acknowledged like that. That was really nice of them, and I was happy I was able to show up for the kids."

2003–2004: It's About Time and continued acting

Milian felt that Island Def Jam was confused as to how they wanted her image to be portrayed; one second she was young and singing "AM to PM", and next she was a grown woman singing "Get Away". She realized that the change confused the audience, and that "nobody was buying it". In 2003, Milian's label Def Soul was shut down and absorbed by its parent Def Jam, although Milian was instead moved over to Island Records. After the international release of her debut album, Milian went back into the recording studio. The singer felt that music trends had changed into rock music, hardcore hip hop and tribute songs, and her music did not fall into those categories. Milian decided to stop recording and toured overseas for a year and a half. When she returned to the US, she decided not to release her previous album domestically, and started working on a new album. Milian traveled the world, working with the popular producers Bloodshy & Avant, "Darkchild", Cory Rooney, Warryn Campbell, Bryan-Michael Cox and Polli Paul.

Milian's second studio album, It's About Time, was released in the US on July 13, 2004. The critical response to the album was mixed; the club tracks, most notably lead single "Dip It Low", were praised while the ballads were said to be disappointing. The style and sound of the album was compared to that of Beyoncé and Jennifer Lopez by several critics.

Milian believed that the album was more R&B when compared to her "bubble-gum" pop debut album. The change was reflected in the album's lead single, "Dip It Low", which was more of a club and R&B track than her previous pop release "AM to PM". Milian performed as an opening act on the Usher and Kanye West tour to promote her album. The album debuted and peaked at number 14 on the Billboard 200 album chart and number 21 in the UK, selling a total of 382,000 and 63,708 copies respectively, and received a Grammy Award nomination for "Best Contemporary R&B Album" in 2005. The album's first single, "Dip It Low", became Milian's biggest hit to date, reaching number two in the UK and number five in the US. The single was certified Gold by the RIAA for digital sales, and earned a Grammy Award nomination for "Best Rap/Sung Collaboration". The album's second and final single, "Whatever U Want", featuring Joe Budden, failed to reprise the success of the lead single but reached the top ten in the UK.

Milian starred in Be Cool, the sequel to Get Shorty, with John Travolta and Uma Thurman, and recorded two songs for its soundtrack. She was then cast in a lead role in the horror film Pulse, starring alongside Kristen Bell and Ian Somerhalder. The film was a remake of the Japanese film Kairo (2001), and was adapted by Wes Craven and Ray Wright. Milian has also appeared in two video games: Def Jam Vendetta (2003), where she plays non-playable character/singer Angeline "Angel" Rodriguez , D-Mob's girlfriend, & a main player love interest. and as one of the female leads, Carmen Mendez, in the video game Need for Speed: Undercover (2008).

2005–2006: So Amazin' and label departure

Milian starred in Be Cool (2005), the sequel to Get Shorty, with John Travolta and Uma Thurman, and recorded two songs for its soundtrack. She was then cast in a lead role in the horror film Pulse, starring alongside Kristen Bell and Ian Somerhalder. The film was a remake of the Japanese film Kairo (2001), and was adapted by Wes Craven and Ray Wright. Filming took place in Romania. The same year, Milian was awarded with a humanitarian award at The Reign fundraiser from the Elton John AIDS Foundation for being a role model for young children. Milian said, "I've never been rewarded that way and never been acknowledged like that. That was really nice of them, and I was happy I was able to show up for the kids."

Whereas Milian's previous albums had pop and R&B stylings, she was encouraged by Island Def Jam to target a new audience and release an urban record. L.A. Reid suggested to Milian that she should work with Cool & Dre, with whom she ended up working with as the first people to start off the album. Although Milian was originally supposed to work with several different music producers, she felt that the chemistry they had in the first week was so "instant and real" that she felt she could not get a better "vibe" with anybody else other than them. Milian ended up working with Cool & Dre on the majority of the production of the album, producing ten of the album's eleven tracks together. The album was completed within a three-month period.

Milian's third studio album, So Amazin', was released on May 16, 2006. The album's lead single, "Say I", featured rapper Young Jeezy. The single saw peak positions of number four in the UK, and number twenty-one in the US. So Amazin' debuted and peaked at number eleven on the Billboard 200 albums chart, selling 54,000 copies in its first week and 163,000 copies in total. Internationally, the album peaked at number 55 on the Swiss Albums Chart, 67 on the UK Albums Chart, and 139 on the France Albums Chart. Reviews of So Amazin' were mixed; critics felt that while Milian claimed that she was displaying the various sides of her personality, the album could "only [scratch] the surface of who she really is." "Say I" was praised by several critics, and was described as "instantly rousing" and "intoxicating". In June 2006, Milian's representative confirmed that Island had released her from the imprint. In an interview with Rap-Up, Milian revealed she was dropped a week after her album was released. The singer believed it was a "budget cut", and that Island Def Jam wanted to spend more money on label mate Rihanna; Milian also turned down what would later be Rihanna's hit single, "SOS". She said, "it was embarrassing. It was a week after my album got put out. I would be in my room a lot of the time crying by myself." After leaving Def Jam, Milian released her first compilation album, The Best of Christina Milian (2006).

2007–2010: Canceled album and continued acting

Milian in 2008

In 2007, Milian worked with the Children Uniting Nations charity, in which she was a big sister to foster children. In May, it was reported that she was to be a leading character in The CW's show Eight Days a Week as Olivia, alongside Mario Lopez, but The CW decided not to pick up the series due to the Writers Guild of America strike. In December, Milian starred as the main character in the Christmas television movie for the ABC Family channel entitled Snowglobe, alongside Lorraine Bracco. That year, Milian began working on material for her fourth studio album, first announced to be titled Dream in Color in 2008 but retitled as Elope the following year. She collaborated with numerous producers, including Cool & Dre, J. R. Rotem, The Runners, Danja, Terry "MaddScientist" Thomas, T-Pain, Jim Jonsin and Toby Gad.

Milian signed with MySpace Records in 2008. The single "Us Against the World" premiered via MySpace on October 6, 2008, and was made available by digital download the next day. Milian appeared in the video game Need for Speed: Undercover (2008) as one of the female leads, Carmen Mendez.

In early 2009, Milian began working with The-Dream, Tricky Stewart, and L.O.S. Da Maestro, which led to her signing a deal with Radio Killa Records. Milian revealed that aside from "Us Against the World", The-Dream and Tricky Stewart would be producing all the songs on her album. In June 2009, The-Dream said that the album was finished. Upon completion of the album, Milian said it represented "independence, not having to answer to any type of 'authority', being a woman at her best and feeling very confident". In August 2009, Milian confirmed that she had signed a deal to release Elope through Interscope Records with a 2010 release date. Milian became romantically involved with The-Dream, and the pair eloped that September. Milian announced that she was pregnant, and in October, it was reported that the album had been postponed. The pair separated in late 2009, only three months after their wedding. Despite the separation, Milian and The-Dream continued to "work together and write together". That year, Milian had a minor role in Ghosts of Girlfriends Past alongside Matthew McConaughey, and starred as the lead role in the straight-to-DVD film Bring It On: Fight to the Finish.

In January 2010, Milian said that she was going back into the studio in the summer to record more material. Although the album had already been finished, she wanted to "go back and re-do some of the music and make some new songs and find my new inspiration". At the 2010 Los Angeles Fashion Week, Milian performed "Dip It Low" and the new song "Zipper". At the 2010 American Music Awards, she said the album would be ready in 2011. In September 2011, however, she confirmed that the material recorded for Elope would not be released, and the album was ultimately shelved.

2010–present: Return to music, The Voice and Dancing with the Stars

Milian at the premiere of Iris by Cirque du Soleil in 2011

In June 2011, her collaboration with The Jackie Boyz titled "Memory" was released in Japan. It appeared on their album Songs In My Blackberry. NBC announced on October 27 that Milian would serve as the official Social Media Correspondent for The Voice during its second season. The role saw Milian make regular appearances during the live broadcasts. Milian maintained the role through its fourth season.

On February 12, 2012, Christina Milian parted ways with Radio Killa Records and signed with Young Money. The next day, a song titled "Mr. Valentine" leaked onto the internet. In May 2013, she collaborated with the Stafford Brothers and Lil' Wayne on the single "Hello" which reached the Top 15 on the Billboard Dance charts. In September 2013, Milian became a contestant on Dancing with the Stars (season 17). She was partnered with professional dancer Mark Ballas. She was eliminated in the fifth week, finishing in the ninth place. In November 2014, she collaborated with Lil' Wayne on his single, "Start a Fire", which they performed on the American Music Awards.

Milian speaking at the 2016 Arizona Ultimate Women's Expo at the Phoenix Convention Center in Phoenix, Arizona

On January 18, 2015, Milian's reality show, Christina Milian Turned Up, premiered on E!. The series follows the day-to-day lives of Christina, her mother Carmen and her two sisters, Danielle and Liz Flores. It was renewed for a second season in April, which premiered in November 2015. In March, she released the singles "Rebel" and "We Ain't Worried"; the latter was used to promote her "We Are Pop Culture" clothing line. In July, she announced she was going to release a 5-track EP and video set, and was working with director Mike Ho. That month, she performed the National Anthem at the 2015 Americafest and premiered a new single "Like Me" featuring Snoop Dogg. A few months later, she released another single "Do It" with Lil' Wayne. Her EP 4U was released on December 4, 2015. The EP was released independently through her own label, Milianheiress Music, though she remained signed to Young Money.

In 2016, she collaborated with So Solid Crew's MC Harvey on the dance track "We Own the Night" which premiered on August 12, 2016. In June 2017, she appeared as a judge/panelist on the Fox television show, Superhuman.

In 2019, Milian starred in the Netflix romantic comedy Falling Inn Love (2019), costarring Adam Demos. Falling Inn Love was the first Netflix movie to be shot entirely in New Zealand. In 2023 she joined the Netflix romantic comedy, Meet Me Next Christmas, as executive producer and cast member. The film was released in November 2024 on the streaming plattform. In 2024, Milian was cast as María LaGuerta in Dexter-prequel television show Dexter: Original Sin.

Entrepreneurship

Milian co-owns Viva Diva Wines with her mother and manager Carmen Milian, as well as her publicist Robyn Santiago.

Personal life

Heritage

Milian has been faced with the challenges of being an Afro-Latina.

Relationships and children

Milian met actor Nick Cannon on the set of their film, Love Don't Cost a Thing, in 2003, and they began dating. After being together for two and a half years, Milian ended her relationship with Cannon in 2005.

After the production of So Amazin' in 2006, Milian began dating Andre Lyon from the production group Cool & Dre. The pair dated until February 2009.

In February 2009, reports emerged that Milian was dating musician The-Dream. In late May 2009, it was reported that Milian and The-Dream were getting married, and the couple celebrated their engagement party in Las Vegas in June. On September 4, 2009, Milian and The-Dream eloped and were married at the Little White Chapel in Las Vegas, Nevada. MTV reported that Milian and The-Dream would get married again in Rome, Italy, and then renew their vows in the US in front of family and friends. On September 11, 2009, it was announced that Milian and The-Dream were expecting their first child together. The pair separated in late 2009, after only three months. On February 26, 2010, Milian gave birth to a daughter. This was Milian's first child, and the fourth for The-Dream, who had three children with ex-wife Nivea. As a Catholic, she baptized her daughter into the faith. Two years after she and The-Dream separated, their divorce became finalized on October 23, 2011.

In September 2010, Milian began dating James "Jas" Prince, Jr., son of impresario James Prince, the founder and CEO of Rap-A-Lot Records. In April 2013, Milian and Prince became engaged. However, she moved out of the couple's home on June 19, 2014, and the couple called off their engagement.

In July 2014, it was rumored she was dating rapper Lil Wayne, with whom she attended the ESPY Awards. They later confirmed their relationship in mid-2015. They split in August 2015 after collaborating on various singles, videos, and concert dates.

Milian has been in a relationship with French singer M. Pokora since 2017. In July 2019, the couple announced they were expecting a baby boy together, who was born in January 2020. In December 2020, the couple announced they were expecting their second child together, and they were also married that month. In April 2021, they welcomed their second son. Since 2023, Milian lives in France.

Artistry

Milian possesses a soprano vocal range. Her vocal style has been compared to Paula Abdul and Aaliyah by critics. Earlier in her career, Milian was mainly an urban pop and teen pop singer but as she matured and grew her sound later grew to branch out into a more hip hop soul and straight forward R&B sound on her later two releases It's About Time (2004) and So Amazin' (2006).

Milian described the sound of the album as "hip hop under-toned with nice, pop melodies", and later said the genre of the album was "bubble-gum pop". She described lead single "AM to PM" as a "very pop" and "fun, party/club song". The genre of the album was described by one critic as "light-hearted, energetic R&B pop tunes". Sonically, the album was said to stick to the "pop formula of Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera". One reviewer compared Milian to other singers of her generation, and found that "while Spears has gone raunchy with 'I Love Rock 'n' Roll', Christina Aguilera down and dirty on Stripped, and even clean-cut Mandy Moore has brashly cut her hair Felicity-style, Milian still seems young and real." Milian described the genre of It's About Time as more R&B in comparison to her "bubble-gum pop" debut album. Discussing the change of genre between her lead singles, Milian said that the "first single off my last album, 'AM to PM', was more of a kiddie kind of thing, very pop. [Dip It Low] is more R&B, kind of a club/party kind of vibe." An issue Milian had with the album was that it did not flow. The various pop and urban influences in that album, she found, confused the audience. For her next studio album, Milian said that she wanted a more consistent feel.

Other ventures

In 2010, Milian signed Australian singers, Kasey Osborne and Kelsey-Maree, as their manager. Milian said, "the girls have everything it takes to be the biggest international duo out there. The world is definitely ready for these beautiful girls to hit the stage and kill it on screen." She said that the duo were the "most exciting project" she had worked on.

Discography

• Christina Milian (2002)
• It's About Time (2004)
• So Amazin' (2006)

Filmography

Film

Television

Video games

Awards and nominations