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Christina plays first solo gig on Chinese Mainland

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Having conquered the world with her chart-topping vocals, blonde bombshell Christina Aguilera has brought her inimitable funky sounds live to a whole new audience. The Genie In A Bottle singer, who kicked off her Asia tour in Japan last week, played her first ever solo gig on the Chinese Mainland on Tuesday. "I've never been to China before, so it's very exciting for me to be here," enthused Christina at a Shanghai photo call the previous day.

While there were apparently some initial misgivings about Christina's racy stage reputation, the concert - which pays homage to jazz and blues icons such as Billie Holiday, Nina Simone and Aretha Franklin - was finally given the go-ahead by Chinese officials. They may have been mollified by the fact that the pop chameleon's current incarnation is considerably tamer than some of her past personas. The raunchy costumes of past tours have been replaced by vintage-inspired ensembles by official tour outfitter Robert Cavalli.

In taking to the city's Grand Stage the four-time Grammy winner - who'll also be dropping in on Singapore, Hong Kong and the Philippines during her 18-day 'Back To Basics' tour - follows in the footsteps of the Rollings Stones and Eric Clapton.

Music isn't the only thing on Christina's mind these days it seems. The singer has apparently set her sights on the movies, and has been ploughing though scripts in her down time in search of the perfect vehicle with which to launch her acting career. "I am looking forward to moving into another form of what I feel is another creative outlet for me," she says.

Photo: © Alphapress.com
The songstress wowed the 8,700-strong crowd with her performance on Tuesday Photo: © AFP
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Christina, who's swapped her original daring outfits for a funkier retro look, was elegant in a white trouser suit by the tour's official outfitter, Roberto CavalliPhoto: © AFP
Photo: © Alphapress.com
During down time on the Asia leg of her tour the singer, whose style is inspired by cinema legend Marilyn Monroe, has been reading through scripts to find a suitable vehicle for her silver screen debutPhoto: © Getty Images