The Cromwell College year 9 pupil has been a staple performer in Cromwell since she was 8 years old singing at community events and musical productions.
At age 11, she won radio station Newstalk ZB’s competition "The Star of Christmas" and was flown to Auckland to record a cover of Mariah Carey’s classic All I Want for Christmas, accompanied by Nathan King from the band Zed.
Last year Mischa sang the national anthem live on Sky TV for the Toyota Supersprints at Highlands Motorsport Park.
Now she is preparing to head to the United States in October to perform at the California Center for the Arts in San Diego.
The opportunity came about through a former singing teacher who asked if they could send through demos of Mischa singing for a student trip to the United States.
Mischa and her family said yes and examples of her singing and performing were sent away.
"It was incredible ... I stood there gobsmacked for 10 minutes straight — I was so happy," she said.
While details of the trip are still being arranged, Mischa is part of a group of student performers selected from throughout New Zealand to take part in the concert, Love Notes.
Mischa is now fundraising to get to the United States, performing throughout Central Otago, along with raffles and a Givealittle page, "Mischa Thomlinson Music opportunity of a lifetime to sing in America".
It is a big step but one the aspiring professional singer is excited about.
"I’m really grateful ... it’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and I am so glad, and so grateful that I got chosen," Mischa said.
