Stella Moya was the stage name of Stella Yau, born in Ipoh in 1916 to an English mother and Chinese father. She moved to England with her mother when she was nine, where she underwent dance instruction and stage training. At age nineteen, Yau was talent-spotted at a London dance, and became the first Malayan to appear in a film produced in Britain, the 1935 comedy “Stormy Weather”. She played the part of a Chinese girl, Stella Moya, from which she took her stage name. After appearing in several British films, Moya moved on to stage performance and eventually joined jazz musician Nat Gonella as his band’s singer. She was also known by the stage name Mystella.