Michiko was born in Bromsgrove, England to a Japanese mother and an English father. She moved to Kobe, Japan at the age of two in 1987, but returned to England in 1995 after the Great Hanshin earthquake. Determined to be a singer, she performed in an acoustic duo before returning to Japan when she was 18. The following year, she met Tomokazu Matsuzawa, producer for acts such as Mika Nakashima, Miliyah Kato, Soulhead, and Chemistry. The pair worked together for three years developing her talent before MiChi entered Japan's dance club scene. In March 2007, she released the track "Surrender" on a dance compilation titled "Freedom House Mode Collection". It was followed a year later with her independently released English language album "Michi Madness", which entered the Japanese Oricon weekly albums chart, but only peaked at number 148.