Michelle maintained a strong presence among Germany's leading pop acts for well over ten years. Originally named Tanja Oberloher, she was born in Villingen-Schwenningen on February 15, 1972, and spent her youth in the Blumberg district, where she joined several local groups while still a teenager. Broadcasts on the Südwestfunk network caught the ear of singer Kristina Bach, who produced Michelle's first single after the name change, the 1993 release "Und Heut' Nacht Will Ich Tanzen." Its popularity earned her a slot on ZDF-Hitparade to promote the debut album Erste Sehnsucht.
She finished second at the 1994 Deutschen Schlager-Festspielen with "Silbermond und Sternenfeuer" and, three years afterward, performed "Im Auge des Orkans" at the Eurovision Song Contest. The exposure, even without a win, lifted her profile sharply and helped sales of the third album Wie Flammen im Wind. In 1999 she collected the first of two Goldene Stimmgabel trophies as Germany's best-selling vocalist, an achievement built on singles such as "Dein Püppchen Tanzt Nicht Mehr," "Nenn Es Liebe Oder Wahnsinn," and "Und Wir Wollten Doch Mal Fliegen." She returned to Eurovision two years later and placed eighth in the final with "Wer Liebe Lebt."
Spring 2003 brought a brain aneurysm only hours before a scheduled concert. Although she recovered physically, the event precipitated a struggle with depression that reportedly ended in a suicide attempt. She withdrew from the public eye for a time, setting aside celebrity life to launch a dog-grooming business. Her 2005 comeback album Leben met with favorable notices. In April 2006 she appeared in Playboy, and later that year she took part in the reality series Dancing on Ice. The subsequent album Glas, however, did not reach the German Top Ten. A tour planned for 2007 was canceled at the end of January because of illness, and in March Michelle declared her intention to retire.
