Kellie Pickler

Kellie Pickler was born June 28, 1986 at the Stanly Memorial Hospital in Albemarle, North Carolina

Kellie Pickler warmed America's hearts on the show American Idol in Season 5, when she auditioned for the show singing "Since You've Been Gone" by Kelly Clarkson. Kellie Pickler was born June 28, 1986 at the Stanly Memorial Hospital in Albemarle, North Carolina and was raised in Palestine, a small community outside of Albemarle. Her mother, Cynthia Morton, gave birth to her at age 18 and abandoned her when she was two years old, and her father is Clyde "Bo" Pickler, Jr. In 1992, Morton returned to Albemarle but did not make contact with her daughter until March 1995 when Kelly's Father was convicted of armed robbery; Morton was granted custody of Kellie but was abusive. After a court filing in 1997, Kellie's paternal grandparents became her legal guardians.

Kellie Pickler was raised by her grandfather, Clyde Pickler Sr., who worked as an electrician, and her grandmother, Faye Pickler, until her grandmother's death in January 2002. She continued to live with her grandfather and her younger brother Eric. Kellie graduated in the class of 2004 from North Stanly High School in New London, NC. She was a cheerleader and dancer, and sang "On the Side of Angels" by (LeAnn Rimes) at her graduation commencement from North Stanly in 2004. She has worked as a waitress at a Sonic Drive In.

Kellie Pickler finished sixth on the fifth season of the Fox television series American Idol. After Idol, despite being eliminated in sixth place, Kellie Pickler went on and signed a recording contract with the major record company BNA Records, a country label owned by RCA Records and Sony BMG Music Entertainment; in conjunction with Idol series creator Simon Fuller's 19 Recordings Limited. Her debut single, "Red High Heels" was released on September 25, 2006 and the debut album followed on October 31 of the same year.

20th Century Fox and 19 Television are currently developing a half-hour situational comedy starring Kellie as a naïve small-town Southern woman who discovers her biological father is the state's governor.

Kellie Pickler's "Red High Heels" music video was officially released to the public on October 20, 2006. Her older sister appeared in the music video alongside her in the scene where she is driving in the car with friends. Kellie's music video for "Red High Heels" peaked to #2 on GAC Top 20 Countdown in its third week.

Kellie Pickler's debut album, Small Town Girl was released on October 31, 2006 by BNA Records, and the first single "Red High Heels" debuted on September 13, 2006. The album includes five songs that Pickler co-wrote with producer Blake Chancey including Chris Lindsey, Aimee Mayo and Karyn Rochelle. Kellie is signed with 19 Entertainment in conjunction with BNA Records, a Sony BMG Music Entertainment record label.

Her debut album landed at #9 on the Billboard Top 200 and topped the Country Album Chart selling 79,000 copies in its first week.