About
Biography
Oksana Stefanivna Hrytsai, better known as Mika Newton, is a Ukrainian singer born on March 5, 1986, in Burshtyn, Ukraine. Now based in Los Angeles, California, Newton has made a name for herself in the music industry.
Her stage name, Mika Newton, is inspired by Mick Jagger and symbolizes a “new tone.” From an early age, she developed her singing skills by imitating radio artists and participated in regional voice competitions from the age of nine.
At 16, she moved to Kyiv to study at the College of Circus and Variety Arts, focusing on voice, piano, acting, dance, and pantomime. Her talent caught the attention of music professionals, and she soon signed with the Kyiv-based Falyosa Family Factory.
Newton represented Ukraine in the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest in Düsseldorf, Germany, with the song “Angel,” finishing fourth. Her performance was notably accompanied by sand artist Kseniya Simonova.
Before Eurovision, Newton had released two albums and provided theme songs for various Ukrainian and Russian films and TV shows. This success led her to Los Angeles to collaborate with songwriter Walter Afanasieff and perform in front of producer Randy Jackson.
Post-Eurovision, Newton signed with JK Music Group and Randy Jackson’s Friendship Collective, moving to Los Angeles to advance her pop-rock career. Her debut U.S. single, “Don’t Dumb Me Down,” was released on February 21, 2012, with a video premiering on MTV’s Buzzworthy.
Newton appeared on the Chinese reality show Maoren Queen in 2012 and later released “Come Out and Play,” remixed by Paul Oakenfold. They promoted the remix at the Winter Music Conference in 2012, and Newton continued performing acoustic shows in Los Angeles.
She released a single in Ukrainian, “Ne vidpuskai” in February 2013. The music video for “Magnets,” co-written by Newton, premiered on OK! magazine’s USA website in May 2013. Her second U.S. single’s video, “Come Out and Play,” debuted in Las Vegas in August 2013. Newton was featured in Maxim’s October 2013 issue.
In December 2018, Newton married talent agent Chris Saavedra in the United States. She performed at the 2022 Grammy Awards with John Legend and fellow Ukrainian artists in a tribute to the lives lost during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. This performance followed a message from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Her sister, Liliya Hrytsai, has served in the Ukrainian Army during the invasion.
