50 facts about Christina Aguilera: donated her wedding gifts to American charities in support of Hurricane Katrina victims

Learn 50 facts about an established pop singer Christina Aguilera.

1. One of the most accomplished performers of the last decade, she has sold more than 25 million albums worldwide, achieved four #1 singles on the Billboard hot 100 chart, and has won four Grammy Awards and a Latin Grammy Award, as well as two top five albums in the United States.

2. She has collaborated with other great artists including Herbie Hancock, Andrea Bocelli, Sean "Diddy" Combs and most recently, the legendary Tony Bennett.

3. After sweeping the top of the charts with her third album, "Back to Basics," which debuted at #1 in August '06 and went on to become the biggest seller in the SoundScan era for a female artist, shipping 3.7 million worldwide, the unstoppable Aguilera announced a 41-city North American tour.

4. With special guests the Pussycat Dolls as openers, the fashion legend Roberto Cavalli as the exclusive costume designer, choreographer and director Jamie King (Madonna, Janet Jackson and Prince) on board, and a unique stage design that allowed fans unprecedented access to the pop star, the shows were a feast for all senses and earned her rave reviews.

5. Barely catching her breath from this whirlwind, which came at the heels of extensive European dates, Aguilera lent her hand to an entirely new production-an eponymous perfume, which she launched in October '07 through Procter and Gamble.

6. In January 2008, Aguilera gave birth to her first child, son Max Liron Bratman.

7. Following the birth, in February 2008 the new mom served as the muse behind London jeweler Stephen Webster's new sterling silver collection.

8. The Staten-Island native's trajectory from performing in local talent shows in Pennsylvania, where she grew up, to getting her big break on "Star Search" in 1992 to landing a part on the Disney Channel's "The New Mickey Mouse Club", is well known.

9. It was her song, "Reflection," for Disney's "Mulan," that led to a record deal with RCA and the release of her self-titled debut album in the summer of 1999.

10. The album quickly hit #1 on the strength of its first dance/pop single, "Genie In A Bottle" (which dominated the charts for five weeks) and other chart toppers including "What A Girl Wants."

11. In 2001 Aguilera joined forces with Pink, Mya and Lil' Kim on the smash "Lady Marmalade" single and video.

12. Earning her first of four Grammy Awards in 2000 for Best New Artist, her subsequent trophies came in 2001 for "Lady Marmalade" (Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals), in 2003 for "Beautiful" (Best Female Pop Vocal Performance) and in 2007 for "Ain't No Other Man (Best Female Pop Vocal Performance), winning a Grammy for each of her albums.

13. Among countless other honors, she is also the recipient of a 2001 Latin Grammy Award for Mi Reflejo (Best Female Pop Vocal Album), a 2000 Billboard Music Award for Female Artist of the Year, and two 2004 Rolling Stone Music Awards (Best Female Performer, Readers' Pick; and Best Tour, Readers' Pick, "Justified and Stripped"). Voted Sexiest Teen Idol in a VH1 poll, Aguilera's beauty and charisma have also led Teen People to list her among its "25 Hottest Stars Under 25" and Maxim to crown her Best International Female Singer (2000), one of the Sexiest Women of the Year (2003) and #1 on their "Hot 100" List (2003).

14. Aguilera has also been honored with two NRJ Awards (Best International Female, Best International Album) as well as a 2007 MTV Europe Award (Best Female Artist).

15. A major contributor to the fight against AIDS, Aguilera has participated in the "What's Going On?" cover project for AIDS Project Los Angeles' Artists Against AIDS.

16. In 2004 she became the new face for MAC cosmetic company and spokesperson for the MAC AIDS Fund.

17. More recently she became involved in awareness campaigns with Youth AIDS and ALDO.

18. She also sponsors and is actively involved in the Women's Center and Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh for battered women and children.

19. Aguilera's fifth studio album, Back to Basics (2006), incorporates elements of 1920s-1940s blues, soul, and jazz music. The album debuted atop the record charts of thirteen nations, and yielded a Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for the single "Ain't No Other Man".

20. In 2010, Aguilera released her electronic-inspired sixth studio album, Bionic, which failed to match the chart impact and sales of her previous albums. Later that year, Aguilera starred alongside Cher in the film Burlesque.

21. In 2011, Aguilera was featured on Maroon 5's worldwide top ten single "Moves like Jagger".

22. She became an original coach on the U.S. television series The Voice, and has since appeared on four of its seven seasons.

23. Aguilera is an established pop icon; her work has earned her five Grammy Awards, one Latin Grammy Award and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

24. As of April 2011, Aguilera has sold 50 million albums worldwide.

25. Rolling Stone ranked her at number 58 on their list of 100 Greatest Singers of All Time, making Aguilera the youngest singer to appear on the list, while Billboard recognized her as the twentieth most successful artist of the 2000s.

26. Besides her work in the entertainment industry, Aguilera is involved in charitable activities through human rights, world issues, and her work as a UN ambassador for the World Food Programme.

27. Christina María Aguilera was born in Staten Island, New York on December 18, 1980, to Shelly Loraine (née Fidler), a musician, and Fausto Xavier Aguilera, a United States Army soldier.

28. Her father is Ecuadorian, while her mother has German, Irish, Welsh, and Dutch ancestry.

29. Her family moved frequently because of her father's military service, and lived in places including New Jersey, Texas, New York, and Japan.

30. Following her parents' divorce when she was six years old, Aguilera, her younger sister Rachel, and her mother (who later remarried) moved into her grandmother's home in the Pittsburgh suburb of Rochester, Pennsylvania.

31. After several years of being estranged, Aguilera expressed interest in reconciling with her father in 2012.

32. Growing up, Aguilera aspired to be a singer, known locally as "the little girl with the big voice", singing in local talent shows and competitions.

33. She won her first talent show at the age of 8, in which she performed Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)".

34. In 1990, she appeared on Star Search singing "A Sunday Kind of Love", and was eliminated during the semi-final rounds. She later performed the same song during an appearance on Pittsburgh's KDKA-TV's Wake Up with Larry Richert.

35. Throughout her youth in Pittsburgh, Aguilera sang "The Star-Spangled Banner" before Pittsburgh Penguins hockey, Pittsburgh Steelers football and Pittsburgh Pirates baseball games, in addition to the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals.

36. In 1991, Aguilera auditioned for a position on The Mickey Mouse Club, although she did not meet its age requirements. She joined the television series two years later, where she performed musical numbers and sketch comedy until its cancellation in 1994. Her co-stars included Ryan Gosling, Keri Russell, Britney Spears, and Justin Timberlake.

37. When she was fourteen, Aguilera recorded her first song, the duet "All I Wanna Do" with Japanese singer Keizo Nakanishi.

38. She later sent her cover version of Houston's "Run to You" to Walt Disney Pictures in hopes of being selected to record the theme song "Reflection" for their animated feature film Mulan (1998).

39. "Reflection" peaked at number 19 on the U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart, and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song, which went to "The Prayer" by Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli.

40. Aguilera recorded "Hello" for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class car advertisement, and a revised version of Rose Royce's "Car Wash" with Missy Elliott for the animated film Shark Tale, where she also voiced a Rastafarian jellyfish.

41. Aguilera is a soprano, having a vocal range spanning four octaves (from C3 to C♯7). Since the start of her career Aguilera's voice has been compared to that of Mariah Carey and Whitney Houston.

42. Aguilera has credited blues singer Etta James as her main influence and inspiration, elaborating, "Etta is my all-time favorite singer. I've said it for the last seven years - since I had my first debut record out - in every interview".

43. Other classic artists, including Billie Holiday, Otis Redding, Aretha Franklin, Nina Simone, and Ella Fitzgerald, are also Aguilera's major influences; her fifth studio album Back to Basics is inspired by vintage jazz, blues and soul music records by them.

44. Fashion has also been a part of Aguilera's music career and image. She has frequently worn clothes designed by Roberto Cavalli, John Galliano, Marc Jacobs, and Alexander McQueen.

45. In 2000, Aguilera supported a program called Come on Over and Do Something, which aimed to "encourage kids to get involved in their communities and make a difference."

46. In 2010, Aguilera auctioned tickets for her planned tour for Christie's A Bid to Save the Earth, which benefited the non-profit environmental groups Conservation International, Oceana, Natural Resources Defense Council, and The Central Park Conservancy.

47. Aguilera contributes regularly to the Women's Center & Shelter of Greater Pittsburgh, and has worked with Lifetime Television's "End violence against women" campaign.

48. Singer Elton John featured Aguilera in his charity book 4 Inches, which benefitted the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

49. In 2005, Aguilera donated her wedding gifts to American charities in support of Hurricane Katrina victims.

50. She performed at "Unite of the Stars" concert for Unite Against Hunger in Johannesburg, South Africa and for the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund at the Coca-Cola Dome.

Source: facebook.com/christinaaguilera, Wikipiedia.org