The second-place finisher of 2011 'American Idol' makes a new record as the best-selling female country debut since 2006 with her first album 'Wildflower'.
- Oct 24, 2011
AceShowbiz - Making her breakthrough via reality singing competition "American Idol", Lauren Alaina proves she is not a one-day sensation when her debut album "Wildflower" performed well on the charts. It landed at No. 2 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and No. 5 on the Billboard Top 200 after it was released on October 11.
With around 69,000 copies sold in its first week, the album marked the best-selling female country debut since 2006. The sales number also led the Georgia-born singer to become the youngest female artist debuting this high on the Billboard charts since LeAnn Rimes made her debut 15 years ago.
"I am just so thankful that I have been given the opportunity to share my music with the world," Lauren humbly said of her achievement. "To see my name on the charts alongside country greats that I have admired and looked up to my whole life is absolutely mind-blowing!"
Her road to stardom was not an easy one. Appearing on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" after "Idol" finale, the 16-year-old songstress revealed that she was rejected several times on "America's Got Talent" before auditioning for "Idol". Not ashamed of the rejection, she managed to make "AGT" judge Piers Morgan admit, "This is a scandal."
Lauren has additionally got support from fellow country music singers such as Carrie Underwood who called her "a breath of fresh air in country music today." Meanwhile, Martina McBride who performed together with the "Like My Mother Does" singer at CMA Music Festival praised her, "I think she's really talented and she's such a sweet girl."
