Carly Smithson
Carly Sarah Smithson (née Hennessy, born 12 September, 1983, in Dublin, Ireland) is a singer-songwriter and actress, associated with several acts. She recorded two solo albums, Carly's Christmas Album and Ultimate High, and was a finalist on American Idol in 2008. She also appeared in several small acting roles a a child. She is currently the leading vocalist for the band We Are The Fallen as of 2009.
Early life
Smithson began singing around the age of four. Before she started pursuing her singing career further, appeared in a series of child acting bits. Starting at age five, she appeared in commercials for Denny's sausage for three years. In 1990, she had a cameo in the movie Fools of Fortune as Young Marianne. She later joned the cast of Lés Miserables, starring in the role of Little Cosette, in 1992. At age 10, she released her first independent album, Carly's Christmas Album. Little else is known about it, other than that it was available for sale throughout the United Kingdom. In 1999, she moved to the United States with her father, shortly after which she dropped out of high school to continue her singing career.
Ultimate High
In 2001, Smithson joined with MCA records to release her second solo project, a pop record called Ultimate High. The album sold a disappointing 378 copies upon its debut, but sales shot up dramatically after her elimination on American Idol for a short period, appearing on the front page of Amazon's mp3 homepage, peaking in the Top 10 of their Top Selling Digital Albums. Otherwise, the album and its two singles, I'm Gonna Blow Your Mind and Beautiful You were generally a miss, reportedly because of the untimely merge of MCA with a parent company, as well as the unfortunate recent of preceding 9/11 attacks. She later met controversy with American Idol that nearly caused her to be disqualified because of this record deal.
