Name |
Medina |
Height |
|
Naionality |
Danish |
Date of Birth |
30-November-1982 |
Place of Birth |
Aarhus, Denmark |
Famous for |
Singing |
Medina Danielle Oona Valbak , known by the mononym Medina is a Danish pop, dance and R&B singer and songwriter.
She released her first singles in Denmark titled "Fla" (Danish for "Rip") and "Et ojeblik" ("One moment") in 2007, followed by her debut album, Tæt pa (Up close). She rose to national fame in 2008 with the release of "Kun for mig" (The danish version of "You and I"), the lead single off her second album, Velkommen til Medina (Welcome to Medina). The single spent six weeks at No.1 on the Danish Singles Chart, eventually reaching the triple-platinum status. The second single off the same album, "Velkommen til Medina" also peaked at No.1 in Denmark which spent five weeks at the top of the singles chart and reached a platinum status there. Even Medina's third and fourth single, "Ensom" ("Lonely") and "Vi to" ("The two of us") peaked at No.2 in Denmark and they both managed to earn her a platinum-award at home.
In September 2009, Medina released an English-language version of "Kun for mig", titled You and I, in the UK, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. This version reached No.39 on the UK Singles Chart and entered the top-10 on the German Singles Chart.
In July 2010, Medina's international debut album, Welcome to Medina was released in Germany, Austria and Switzerland which reached No.9, No.45 and No.24 respectively. Apart from seven new songs, the album also includes English-language versions of the four singles off its Danish counterpart, including "Lonely" (English version of "Ensom), which has been released as the second single off the album.
In 2009, two collaborative singles of Medina have also reached the top of the Danish charts. First is "100 dage" by Medina and Thomas Helmig and the second is "Mest ondt" by Burhan G featuring Medina.
Awards won by Medina include Best Danish Act at the 2009 and 2011 MTV Europe Music Awards. In 2010 Medina won six awards at the Danish Music Awards, she was awarded Danish Female Artist of the Year, Danish Album of the Year (Velkommen til Medina), New Danish Name of the Year, Danish Hit of the Year (Vi to), Danish Songwriter of the Year (together with Providers and Danish Producer of the Year (Providers for Medina).
In June 2010, a group of Islamist youths with immigrant background pelted Medina with eggs during a concert in Ishoj near Copenhagen. They were offended by the association with which the name "Medina" was connected as it is one of the most sacred and hallowed Muslim cities: "Sexy dancing and revealing clothing".