"I believe in my voice as a singer," declares Mika Nakashima, alluding to the three words tattooed in English around her right wrist. " 'Trust your voice,' in a broad sense, means we should accept everything and believe in many things. I learned this in New York and developed myself in many ways that I don't want to ever forget."

Her management looks on a little displeased. "I knew I'd be reprimanded (for getting tattoes) if I told them I was going to do it! But that's why the tour is called 'Trust Our Voice.' "

The 26-year-old's ability to balance her elegant good looks with her rebellious fashion sense has been a distinct trait of her own long journey to stardom since she chose not to attend high school in her youth. Raised in the provincial town of Hioki in Kagoshima Prefecture, she has since gone on to score five No. 1 albums — of which three topped the 1-million sales mark — and star in the screen adaptation of the famed Ai Yazawa manga "Nana" in 2005. Playing the character Nana Osaki, an ambitious young punk singer, only solidified the notion that behind the love songs and adult ballads of her music lay a more wayward soul. Discussing the star tattoo on her left wrist, she explains: "As I've been working like this, I have kind of resolved to live as a star. And I think I have something linked with the stars because I have so many songs about them. But when I told the audience of one of my live shows, they burst into laughter even though I meant it! They thought it was a joke."