Kina (musician)

Kina Cosper (born January 25, 1969)[1] known simply as Kina, is an American musician, best known for her work with Grammy Award-nominated group Brownstone (after their nomination), and her 2000 solo single "Girl from the Gutter".

Kina
Birth nameKina Cosper
Born (1969-01-25) January 25, 1969 (age 55)
OriginDetroit, Michigan, U.S.
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • songwriter
  • actress
Years active1995–present
Labels
Formerly ofBrownstone

Biography

Solo career

Kina was born in Detroit. At age 21, she moved to Los Angeles, where she worked as a server and in clerical positions as she tried to establish a musical career.[2] She found success with her single "Girl from the Gutter", which received strong airplay and peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. She then released her self-titled debut album on July 18, 2000. Kina peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart.[3]

"Girl from the Gutter" was followed by the single "Me", which peaked at number 3 on the same chart.[4] "Have a Cry" was released to radio but never charted.

To date this is Kina's only released album. Kina parted ways with DreamWorks Records shortly after the final single release.

A few years after their release, Kina's songs began popping up in various TV shows. In fall 2005 "Give & Take" and "I Love You" both appeared in an episode of the UPN sitcom Girlfriends. Kina's song "Sincerely" was also featured in the motion picture Beauty Shop.

Discography

Albums

Singles

  • "Girl from the Gutter" (2000)
  • "Me" (2000)
  • "Have a Cry" (2000)

References