Troubled Annie

MEG ALLISON - NEWEST RISING STAR 2008

In the past couple of years, Meg Allison has turned into an exciting new addition to the campus market. With her appearance and top 10 finish on Season 5 of USA's popular "American Idol"- like television show, "Nashville Star", she launched herself into the public eye. Its little wonder then, that Meg has taken the award for Newest Rising Star of 2008 in Campus Activities® Magazine's Reader's Choice Awards.



"I started playing music as a child. While a lot of the other kids were doing sports I was writing songs when I was really young. Eventually I went off to college and got an acoustic guitar, because I had originally trained on piano. I taught myself to play and started writing some more cohesive songs. Eventually I realized this was what I wanted to do, so when I graduated I moved to Jackson Hole, Wyoming (a big tourist town) and started playing in bars."

Playing mostly cover songs in the beginning, Meg played more and more original tunes as she progressed. She eventually moved back to her hometown of Chicago with hopes of bigger and better opportunities. "I started playing around the city and heard of NACA from the producer of my first album. "I submitted on my own and ended up landing all these showcases. It kind of just all fell together."

Meg nearly scoffs at the notion of being able to categorize herself as a musician. "I grew up primarily listening to pop music and then when I started playing guitar I began to write songs; so my style took on sort of a narrative form. This naturally led me to country music and my voice sounds much more country than anything else. Everyone in Chicago who heard me always told me 'You know you should really move to Nashville. You would fit right in there.' When I finally went, I was like 'Oh, yeah! This is exactly where I should be.'

"I think I'm still kind of making that transition into country music. It is a craft that you have to learn, study and embrace because the songwriting is so much different and unique from any other genre. Now I really just consider myself to be sort of country/pop acoustic singer/songwriter (laughs). I know that is five different things, but that is as close as I can get. I am the country singer for those people who don't listen to country; I hear that a lot."

Congratulations to Meg Allison for her win in the category of Newest Rising Star of 2008 in our Reader's Choice Awards. - CAM

For all press please visit

myspace.com/megallisonmusic
and
myspace.com/joshuastevensmusic - All