Anastacia burst onto the music scene in 1999 with her debut album "Not That Kind," and wowed audiences and critics alike, with her powerful vocal range. She promptly conquered Europe and secured her place as an International superstar with gold, platinum and multi-platinum sales status in more than a dozen countries with overall album sales exceeding 5 million copies. Add to that an exuberant personality, a fierce sense of individuality and personal style, a vocal prowess that defies categorization and a long list of awards, including Best New International Artist at the 2001 World Music Awards and a nomination for Best New Artist at the 2001 MTV Europe Music Awards and you've got yourself an artist who is proud of who she is.

"For those with Crohn's, holding in our emotions or masking her unhappiness fuels the symptoms," said Anastacia. "What is seen as a curse for some, is a gift for me, because it has helped me to discover who I really am as a person. The disease has given me a clear window to my own emotions, which causes me to live each moment and to understand exactly how I'm behaving in a particular situation."

This outlook also gave her the strength she needed when she was coming up in the music business or in other words, paying her dues. Following several jobs as a dancer on "Club MTV" and appearances in numerous hit videos, her dismissal as a receptionist in a Los Angeles hair salon found Anastacia on the unemployment line and completely disenchanted with a business that she had been around all of her life – her father was a crooner and her mother, an actress who worked in musical theater and on Broadway.

"I was told that I needed to look a certain way, to sound a certain way, to move a certain way and all I wanted to do was just sing. I couldn't understand why this was such an issue."

Anastacia got the break she had been waiting for after she was introduced to her manager, who got her a booking on MTV's "The Cut." After a show-stopping performance, she was recognized by the right people, courted by several producers and was finally signed to Epic Records. However, it was also on this show that Anastacia formed a key relationship with Michael Jackson, who encouraged Anastacia to keep singing after he saw her performance on "The Cut." That key relationship has since come full-circle in the evolution of Anastacia's recording career.

Five times platinum under her belt and International stardom to boot, Anastacia has clearly made the "the cut" of another kind. In addition to performing on several of the top award shows around the world, Anastacia was reunited with the Michael Jackson when he invited her to sing "What More Can I Give" at his side along with Faith Evans, Mariah Carey, N'SYNC and other top performers at the historic United We Stand benefit concert in Washington DC. She joined Mary J. Blige, Cher, Shakira and others for VH1's fifth annual "Divas Live" showcase in May 2002.

Needless to say our minds are made up and why shouldn't they be? Anastacia is an original – her talents are unique, her songwriting honest, her singing passionate, her personality sincere. Is she a freak of nature? Perhaps. But this is one freak of nature that's got the goods.