December12: Country singer Katrina Elam is 30-years-old today.

Katrina Ruth Elam's talents first turned heads as a teenager. Performing since the age of 9, by 15, the native of tiny Bray, Oklahoma, had been named female vocalist of the year by both the Oklahoma Country Music Association and the Oklahoma Opry.

She went on to become the Oklahoma Opry's youngest ever entertainer of the year. Fellow Oklahoman Vince Gill, who first met her as a teen, says even at that young age Elam's "God-given talent was undeniable."

By age 16 she was signed to a music publishing deal with Warner Chappell Music and she moved to Nashville shortly after finishing high school in 2002.

Her self-titled debut album was described as "vocally stunning" by Country Weekly magazine, and onetime tour mate Keith Urban praised the "womanly soulfulness" of her music in a People magazine feature on Elam.

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The first single, “No End In Sight,” reached #29 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. The follow-up single "I Want a Cowboy" reached #59 on the same chart. Elam also toured in 2004 with Keith Urban.

Elam later toured with Rascal Flatts to promote her unreleased second album, Turn Me Up. "Love Is," the only single released from the album, peaked at #47 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart in 2006. Another track from the album, "Flat on the Floor," eventually peaking at #52 before being pulled when Carrie Underwood expressed interest in recording the song.

In late 2010, Elam was cast in a sequel to the 1992 film Pure Country, titled Pure Country 2: The Gift Elam's "Dream Big" serves as the lead single for the movie's soundtrack.

Her songs - she wrote or co-wrote all but two - are personal and universal.  The playful innocence of "I Want A Cowboy," the assertiveness of "Normal," the bruised innocence of "The Breakup Song," each offers glimpses into moments from her life.

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For more about Katrina, visit her Website at - www.katrinaelam.com

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