Anika Rose Moa (born 21 May 1980) is a New Zealand recording artist and television presenter. Her debut album Thinking Room, was released in September 2001, which reached number one on the New Zealand Albums Chart and provided two Top 5 singles, "Youthful" (2001) and "Falling in Love Again" (2002). Moa competed at the Rockquest songwriting contest in 1998, which led to a recording contract. She is the subject of two documentaries by film-maker Justin Pemberton: 3 Chords and the Truth: the Anika Moa Story (2003), detailing her signing to a record label and the release of Thinking Room, and In Bed with Anika Moa (2010) on her later career. Early life Anika Moa was born in 1980 in the Auckland suburb of Papakura. She grew up in Christchurch and attended Hornby High School. Her father Tia, who died in 2007, was Māori (Ngāpuhi, Te Aupōuri) and her mother Bernadette is of English descent. Moa and her siblings were raised by Bernadette, who was a member of a band, which performed three days a week. Moa met Tia at 13 – he gave her a guitar and encouraged her to learn songwriting on it. While at secondary school she joined musicals, choirs and rock bands. Music career 1998–2007: Thinking Room to Stolen Hill In 1998, Moa won an award for Most Promising Female Musician and a music school scholarship at the New Zealand Smokefreerockquest high school music competition. After recording a demo tape, she signed a record deal with Warner Music in New Zealand and Atlantic Records in New York. She moved to New York to record her first album, Thinking Room (September 2001), with Victor Van Vugt producing. Her lead single, "Youthful", appeared in July 2001, which reached No. 5 on the New Zealand Singles Chart. Moa became homesick and uncomfortable with the "superficial" imagery used by her manager to promote her. In 2002 she returned to Auckland. She released her second album Stolen Hill on 1 August 2005, describing the album as "more sparse" and true to herself, compared to her first. One track, "In the Morning", refers to her abortion in 2000. The album was certified gold. She toured New Zealand in October of that year. In 2005 Moa was one of many New Zealand musicians who contributed to single "Anchor Me", which commemorated the twentieth anniversary of the bombing of the Rainbow Warrior. 2007–2012: In Swings