(andPOP) -
Is Toby Lightman the luckiest singer in the world?
The 26-year-old New Jersey-native sent a one-song demo to Nettwerk Management, who signed her and set her up with a producer, who set her up with Lava Records, who signed her to a record deal. And all that happened in four months.
"I think I'm very lucky," she tells andPOP, on the line from New York. "I don't know if I'm the luckiest. But it's amazing to see everyone reacting so positively. We'll see if that turns around at some point, hopefully it won't."
Lightman is currently preparing for the March 30 release of her debut album, "Little Things," which she describes as "rock and R&B."
Astonishingly, she only realized she had a great singing voice when someone else told her at the age of 18.
"It was never brought to my attention. It was just one of those things that you try and you like it. I just never tried it before."
At 19, she first began song writing and picked up the guitar for the first time, which she plays on the album.
Starting a music career in your late teens is almost unheard of. Britney Spears began singing when she was 4 years old. Jimmy Hendrix first began playing guitar at age 12. Carol King started writing lyrics when she was 15. Lightman doesn't think beginning late is a negative thing, but rather an advantage over her fellow artists.
"I think when you're older, you'll have more patience."
While her first single, "Devils and Angels," rises on the charts, she is already being compared to other a plethora of other artists- everyone from Aretha Franklin to Sheryl Crow to Avril Lavigne.
"It's unfortunate that people find the need to do that. I don't think any two people are the same unless they are clones. I think that it's kind of a necessary evil. For the most part, people are comparing me to people that I like."
One of those people is Lauryn Hill, a former Fugee, a hip-hop group she loved while growing up. She got the chance to have some recording time in the Booga Basement, the studio belonging to another ex-Fugee, Wyclef Jean. She became friends with Jean's brother and hopes to one day record with the rapper.
With the single still fresh and the album release over a month away, Lightman's fan base has just started building.
"I had the first person singing along [with me], and that was pretty intense," she says of a recent show. "That was weird. You never know how you'd react. I was freaking out."
Lightman will begin touring with Edwin McCain at the end of March.
This might be your first time hearing about Toby Lightman, but if her luck continues, it won't be your last.
Check out the Toby Lightman Media Player and her official site, tobylightman.com.
Take a look at the "Devils and Angels" music video:
Windows Media Player
Real Video
