BIOGRAPHY

about mishon

Mishon Tarique Ratliff was born February 3, 1993 in Los Angeles California. He is the second child of Shontay and Michael Ratliff. Mishon has 2 brothers and one sister. Mishon displayed his singing talent at the young age of 3 years old. He would sing in the bathtub and around his family home all the time.

At the age of 4, his parents enrolled him in a singing class at Moultrie Studio in Montclair California. There he sung with a group of kids his age for a period of 9 months and ended that session with a concert. He was still very shy and only sung at home for his family. Later, in 2nd grade, Mishon joined his elementary school's choir. He auditioned for a solo part in the Christmas concert that year and was the only second grader to get a solo part. He has continually earned solo parts in his school's choir. Mishon came out of his shyness when he sung a solo at his Great Grandfather's funeral in September 2001. He sung, "Lean on Me" as a dedication to his grieving family and had the whole church on its feet.

In August 2002 Mishon participated in "Showtime at the Apollo Kids Talent Search" in Los Angeles California. He auditioned with over 200 kids and was one of 35 to make it to the finals. In October of 2002, Mishon honored his grandmother by singing a special Happy Birthday song to her at her surprise 50th birthday party.

In February 2003, Mishon showcased his talent in front of a live audience when he took the stage at Steve Harvey's Apollo West, in Los Angeles California. He sung Michael Jackson's l'll Be There and drove the crowd crazy. He won first place that night. Also, in Feb. 2003, Mishon auditioned to be a contestant on NBC's America's Most Talented Kid. He was chosen to compete in the 8-10 year old category and his first appearance was April 11, 2003. He appeared again singing Michael Jackson's Rock with You on April 25th. He was a hometown favorite.

When not singing, Mishon enjoys riding his bicycle around his family home and playing his PSP. He also greatly enjoys playing basketball. He is currently a 7th grader and is an honor student. He is an excellent reader and speller and continually earns top grades in all his school subjects.

Other Biography

When a young star breaks onto the scene, demonstrating serious talent on multiple levels, all we can do is stand back in awe. Get ready for Mishon (MY-shawn), a young singer and fledgling songwriter who represents the next wave of pop R&B edged with hip-hop fire.

The 15-year-old vocalist has already stirred up noise with his debut single Excuse Me Mama, which shows off the Los Angeles natives soaring vocal dexterity and considerable teen charm. The track is just the tip of the iceberg, as Mishon is poised to capture even more fans with his exciting debut CD, due this summer on producer/songwriter Vincent Herberts new Streamline Records, a joint venture with Interscope Records.

The multi-talented teen is already a TV star thanks to his role as spunky kid brother Tay on the ABC Family Channel drama Lincoln Heights, which began shooting its third season this spring. Though Mishon has developed his own fan base thanks to his acting chops, he says that singing has always been his first love. Singing since he was a small child, his interest in music impressed his parents enough to enroll him in a local performing group of talented children that performed gigs throughout Southern California.

But it wasnt until he handpicked the song, Lean On Me to perform unexpectedly at the funeral of his great grandfather. At age 9 that folks around him really took notice of the emotion he was able to wring from the song.They asked if anybody had anything to say, and I stepped up to the microphone and started singing, Mishon explains. And thats really what broke me out of my shell because I used to be a very shy child.

One person who took notice was his cousin, Demetreus Doe Mac Henderson, who had started Dynasty Records and wanted to help his young relative polish his talent. Mishon began working on tracks with his cousin at age ten, even completing a couple of independent CD releases. In the meantime, Mishon got interested in acting. After rounds of auditions at age 12, the preteen took some time off but went back to it at age 14. One of his first auditions was for the Lincoln Heights pilot, which was later picked up. But music never stopped for Mishon, who continued to hone his performing craft and record more songs for his eventual solo album.

When Dynasty got a distribution deal with Streamline, Mishon went to the labels Santa Monica offices to sing live for all the executives. Vincent Herbert, the mastermind whos created hits for the likesof Destinys Child, Jo Jo, Toni Braxton, Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder and many more, was so blown away by the young star that he introduced him to Jimmy Iovine, president and CEO of Interscope Geffen A&M Records. Plans for his major label debut went underway immediately.

Inspired by Michael Jackson, Usher, Jodeci, and Boyz II Men, Mishon is rapidly developing a style all his own. He runs through the yearning lyrics of the dance floor single Excuse Me Mama with smooth assurance, sharing a tale of a guy trying to meet that special someone while hanging at the mall. Its a refreshing song, like something young and new, enthuses the singer. Its about seeing a girl but you dont know what to say to her, so I gotta step up to her and express how I feel. I could definitely relate to the song. Though the song has earned him comparisons to Chris Brown, Mishon says hes flattered but hes got his own style. I really wasnt too devastated by it, he laughs about the comments.

The young singer has teamed with uber-songwriters and producers including Sean The Pen Garrett (Usher, Pussycat Dolls, Ciara), The Underdogs (Chris Brown, Jordin Sparks), Dre and Vidal (Ciara, Usher, Mary J. Blige), Carlos L.O.S McKinney (J. Holiday, The Dream), Herbert and others on his debut album. Among the other tunes on Mishons debut are the sweet groove Thinking Bout Ya and the spare electronic bombast of Lifeguard, both of which will have the dance floor pumping. And Mishon promises that like his performing idols, hes got a few fly dance moves of his own saved for the stage.

While Mishon is ready to kick-start his run at the charts and already shines on the small screen, he remains humble and reminds other teens to keep their priorities straight. Something I would like to tell teens is that if theyre a musicianor whatever they may do they should remember that their parents always support them, so they shouldnt be afraid to talk to their parents, says Mishon, whose name is a mashup of the first names of parents Michael and Shontay. I know that a lot of teens are kind of rebellious sometimes, but just keep your support behind you and keep God number one and follow your dreams, dont ever give up. Thats been my stronghold for the last five years.

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