Mishka (born Alexander Mishka Frith, 5 March 1974) is a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

musician from

Bermuda Bermuda is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. The closest land outside the territory is in the American state of North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. Bermuda is an ...

. He released his first self-titled album ''Mishka'' in 1999 and had a hit single in the UK with "Give You All The Love". He is currently signed to

Jimmy Buffett James William Buffett (December 25, 1946 – September 1, 2023) was an American singer-songwriter, author, and businessman. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapis ...

’s record label,

Mailboat Records Mailboat Records is an independent record label established in 1999 by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett after his vanity label Margaritaville Records was absorbed by Island Records when they were sold to Universal Music Group, owner of Bu ...

, and is touring in support of his latest album, 'Ocean is my Potion'. He is also the face of ECO-Neill, surf-clothing company O'Neill's new eco-friendly apparel line.

Biography

Mishka Frith had an unusual childhood. Born to a Bermudian father and

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

n mother, he grew up on his family's boat, sailing from island to island in the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

. Mishka and his sisters (one of whom is also a music artist,

Heather Nova Heather Nova (born Heather Allison Frith, 6 July 1967) is a Bermudian singer-songwriter and poet. , she has released eleven full-length albums, six EPs and twelve singles. Biography Heather Nova was born Heather Allison Frith on Bermuda, a Bri ...

, the other television news reporter and model Susannah Frith) were home schooled until their high school years.Cooke, Stephen (2009)
Mishka’s at home in N.S.
, ''

Chronicle-Herald ''The Chronicle Herald'' is a broadsheet newspaper published in Halifax, Nova Scotia, owned by Postmedia Network. History Early years Founded in 1874 as ''The Morning Herald'', the paper quickly became one of Halifax's main newspapers. The same ...

'', 16 July 2009Mishka Biography
Muze Ltd. (Encyclopedia of Popular Music) His uncle,

Michael K. Frith Michael Kingsbury Frith (born 8 July 1941) is a British artist and television producer. He is the former executive vice-president and creative director of The Jim Henson Company. His contributions to Muppet projects have been extensive and vari ...

, worked for

The Jim Henson Company The Jim Henson Company, Inc., formerly known as Muppets, Inc., Henson Associates, Inc., and Jim Henson Productions, Inc. (commonly referred to as Henson), is an American entertainment company located in Los Angeles, California. The company is kn ...

, and was a creator of

Miss Piggy Miss Piggy is a The Muppets, Muppet character known for her Breakthrough role, breakout role in the sketch comedy television series ''The Muppet Show''. She is notable for her temperamental diva superstar personality, her tendency to use French l ...

, and of the television shows ''

Fraggle Rock ''Fraggle Rock'' (also known as ''Jim Henson's Fraggle Rock'' or ''Fraggle Rock with Jim Henson's Muppets'') is a children's Musical film, musical Fantasy film, fantasy television comedy, comedy puppet television series about interconnected so ...

'' and ''

Between the Lions ''Between the Lions'' is an American animated/live-action/puppet educational children's television series designed to promote reading. The show is a co-production between WGBH in Boston, Sirius Thinking, Ltd., in New York City, and Mississipp ...

''. His son, Mishka's first-cousin, is folk singer Jonathan Frith. In addition to developing his skills as a musician, Mishka also spent countless hours honing his windsurfing talents. He represented

in 1991 and 1992 in the

windsurfing Windsurfing is a wind-propelled water sport that is a combination of sailing and surfing. It is also referred to as "sailboarding" and "boardsailing", and emerged in the late 1960s from the Californian aerospace and surf culture. Windsurfing gain ...

world championships, before concentrating primarily on his music career. Mishka was signed to

Alan McGee Alan John McGee (born 29 September 1960) is a Scottish businessman and music industry executive. He has been a record label owner, musician, manager, and music blogger for ''The Guardian''. He co-founded the independent Creation Records label, r ...

Creation Records Creation Records Ltd. was a British independent record label founded in 1983 by Alan McGee, Dick Green, and Joe Foster. Its name came from the 1960s band The Creation, whom McGee greatly admired. The label ceased operations in 1999, although ...

in the UK in 1997. In 1999, Mishka released his first single, "Give You All The Love" which was an immediate success charting in the Top 40 in the UK and Top 10 in Japan. Mishka released his self-titled debut album ''Mishka'' (including

on backing vocals) later that year which received much critical acclaim in both the UK and Japan.Huey, Steve " Mishka Biography, ''

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

'', Macrovision CorporationKEEP TAKING THE TABERNACLES
, ''

NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...

'', 26 March 1999NME Reviews: You're Bound to be Suspicious of Mishka
, ''

'', 7 May 1999 Mishka's second album '' One Tree'' was produced by Swedish producer Martin Terefe (

KT Tunstall Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall (born 23 June 1975) is a Scottish singer-songwriter and musician. She first gained attention with a 2004 live solo performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on ''Later... with Jools Holland'', and h ...

, James Morrison) in 2005. On his third album, ''Above the Bones'', Mishka worked with longtime

Sly and Robbie Sly and Robbie were a prolific Jamaican rhythm section and production duo, associated primarily with the reggae and dub genres. Drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare teamed up in the mid-1970s after establishing themselves separat ...

guitarist, Daryl Thompson, who played for many years with

Peter Tosh Winston Hubert McIntosh (19 October 1944 – 11 September 1987), professionally known as Peter Tosh, was a Jamaican reggae musician. Along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, he was one of the core members of the band Bob Marley and the Wa ...

and

Black Uhuru Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru ( Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful pe ...

. It was at this time that Mishka met actor

Matthew McConaughey Matthew David McConaughey ( ; born November 4, 1969) is an American actor. He achieved his breakthrough with a supporting performance in the coming-of-age comedy '' Dazed and Confused'' (1993). After a number of supporting roles, his first su ...

. The two shared a deeply rooted appreciation for

music and it was a natural fit for McConaughey to sign Mishka to his j.k. livin record label. In February 2009, ''Above the Bones'' debuted at number

one 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sp ...

on the Billboard Reggae Charts, and Mishka was named 2009's Best New Artist in the singer/songwriter category by

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

. Mishka released his album, ''Talk About'', on 30 March 2010. It again debuted at number one on the iTunes Reggae Chart and includes the song "Homegrown" that features

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

. ''Talk About'' also features "Stars Will Be Shining" and "Give Them Love", produced by

Butch Walker Bradley Glenn "Butch" Walker (born November 14, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was lead guitarist for the glam metal band, SouthGang from the late 1980s to early 1990s. From 1997 to 2001, he became th ...

(

Pete Yorn Peter Joseph Yorn (born July 27, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first gained international recognition after his debut record, '' Musicforthemorningafter'', was released to critical and commercial acclaim in 2001. He is ...

P!nk Alecia Beth Moore-Hart (née Moore; born September 8, 1979), known professionally as Pink (stylized as ), is an American singer and songwriter. She is known for her acrobatic stage presence and activism. At the age of 15, Pink formed the shor ...

Fall Out Boy Fall Out Boy is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Wilmette, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, in 2001. The band consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Patrick Stump, bassist Pete Wentz, lead guitarist Joe Trohman, and drummer A ...

). Mishka began actively touring in support of ''Talk About'' in the spring of 2010. At the same time, Mishka and surf-clothing giant,

O'Neill The O'Neill dynasty ( Irish: ''Ó Néill'') are a lineage of Irish Gaelic origin that held prominent positions and titles in Ireland and elsewhere. As kings of Cenél nEógain, they were historically one of the most prominent family of the Nor ...

, entered into a partnership. O'Neill, the original California surf, snow and lifestyle brand, manufactures wetsuits, drysuits, sports clothing and accessories and is currently developing an eco-friendly apparel line, "ECO-Neill", which Mishka will have a hand in designing. In 2012, Mishka released his EP album "Ocean Is My Potion" on

, featuring his long-time friend and legendary musician

and cover album artwork by surf genre fine artist

Jay Alders Jay Alders is an American fine artist, (home) photographer and graphic designer. He is best known for his original surf art paintings, live painting and is a well-known profile in surf culture for his work with musicians, artists and cause organ ...

. His album ''The Journey'', released in November 2013, topped the Billboard Reggae Albums chart in January 2014, his fifth album to achieve that position.Mishka’s Journey tops Billboard
, ''

Jamaica Observer The ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by ...

'', 10 January 2014. Retrieved 11 January 2014

Discography

*''Mishka'' (1999),

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...

*''In Dub'' –

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

(2000), Sony Music *''One Tree'' (2005),

Cornerstone RAS Skunk Records is a Long Beach, California based record label that was founded by Michael "Miguel" Happoldt and Bradley Nowell in 1990. Skunk is affiliated with the spinoff label Cornerstone R.A.S. The inspiration for forming a record label cam ...

*''Above the Bones'' (2009), j.k. livin' *''Guy With a Guitar'' (2009), j.k. livin' *''Talk About'' (2010), j.k. livin' *''Anything Anytime Anywhere'' (2012), WorldSound *''Ocean Is My Potion'' (2013),

*''The Journey'' (2013), Mailboat *''Roots Fidelity'' (2015), Mishka Music *''Way Out Of Babylon'' (2017), Mishka Music *''In an Instant'' - Featured with Gisto, (2019), Historical * This Love (2022)

References

External links

* *Kurutz, Steve " ''Mishka'' Review, ''

'', Macrovision Corporation {{Authority control 1974 births Living people Creation Records artists Bermudian reggae musicians Bermudian people of Canadian descent