Ahead of her tour, we look at five things you may not know about Nakashima …

1. Mika Nakashima’s career almost ended due to illness

In 2010, Nakashima was forced to take a break from music after releasing her sixth studio album Star. She revealed to Thai newspaper The Nation that she suffered from patulous eustachian tubes in the ears for a decade. The condition severely affected her hearing; she wasn’t able to hear anything but the echo of her own voice. She took two years to recover, then released her seventh album Real.

Inside luxury fashion’s love affair with cinema, beyond the red carpet

2. Her anime fame landed her roles in Hollywood

Nakashima was widely popular among Nana fans due to her role in the live-action adaptation of the anime and manga. Having that fan base helped her bag her first Hollywood role in the film adaptation of video game Resident Evil: Afterlife in 2010. She also reprised the role of “J Pop Girl” in the sequel Resident Evil: Retribution in 2012.

3. She’s a RuPaul fan

4. Her cool on-screen persona helps her maintain privacy

In an interview with Billboard, Nakashima said she’s nothing like the cool and stone-faced characters she portrays in films. But fans seem to have really bought into her on-screen persona, though she shared she’s actually a very warm person.

Taylor Swift’s star-studded Eras Tour film premiere in Los Angeles

She’s used this to her advantage though, saying this harmless misunderstanding has allowed her to keep to herself. “I must have been intimidating or something, but not too many people came up to me, so that worked out well because I’m pretty shy,” she revealed.

5. She’s her own biggest fan

In the same interview, the singer confessed that she prefers her own work over anyone else’s: “The artist I like the best right now is me. My songs are the ones I want to listen to.”

She added that, after 20 years of experience, she’s never been more comfortable and is finally confident with her music.