By| Tashween Ali
Last week, Nicki Manaj surprised YouTube stars, Sophia and Rosie, on The Ellen DeGeneres Show after seeing them cover her song “Super Bass”. Now, whenever you see an adorable kid on YouTube, you think, “Ellen show invite this kid to her show! ” and by the following week and a million views later, she probably does. Ellen has become famed to feature young talent on her show and in May 2010, she founded the record label eleveneleven, a label in search of lesser known artists, many of them scouted from YouTube. Greyson Chance, Tom Andrews, Savannah Robinson and Jessica Simpson are all signed artists of the label. As a new artist it’s already an honor to go viral on the internet, but Ellen’s endorsement means you’ve broken into the industry. Looking back, we’ve gathered the favorite YouTube sensations that have become larger than life after recognition from The Ellen Show. It’s all here: the celebrity surprises, the record labels and the talented kids who are arguably more impressive than the artists they cover. In this day and age, with the internet, YouTube, home videos and eager viewers, if you have what it takes, you will be discovered… by Ellen.
YouTube Sensation: Sophia Grace Brownlee
In pink, fluffy, princess costumes, Sophia Grace Brownlee, 8, along side cousin Rosie, 5, raps to Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass.” Ellen was so impressed when she saw the video, she invited the stars to appear on her show. The confident, funny and smart little girl, Sophia, did an adorable American accent and told Ellen during the interview that it took her only two days to learn the words. If it were up to them, they would just sing and dance as an excuse to wear pink dresses. Little did they know that Nicky Minaj would surprise them and later take them on a shopping spree. From the performance to the shrieking reaction to meeting their idol, these British princesses are too adorable to view just once.
YouTube Sensation: Charlie Puth & Emily Luther
Ellen announced that she signed the duo to her record label during the October 5, 2011 broadcast of her show. She was blown away after seeing their cover of Adele’s “Someone Like You” and thinks “They’re going to be huge!” The video was originally for a contest on Perezhilton.com and it goes to show the pair’s talent when Charlie and Emily shared that it was their first time singing together. This Adele approved cover give chills. Stay tune, these kids are going to be huge!
YouTube Sensation: Savannah Robinson
Savannah Robinson, 12, impressed both Ellen and Jennifer Hudson when they saw her YouTube performance at Long Beach Pride Festival in the Summer of 2010. She wasn’t even suppose to perform! But the crowd loved her small stage act and asked for encore performances on the main stage. In February she sang on The Ellen Show and came back in March, when she officially signed with eleveneleven and performed a duet with Jennifer Hudson. The small girl has a big voice and an even bigger future.
YouTube Sensation: Sam Tsui
Yale class of ’11 graduate, Sam and his accompanist, Kurt Schiender, have been making music since high school. Known for his popular covers, medleys and mash-up, Sam gained his fame on the internet. Performing on several talk shows including The Oprah Winfrey Show, Sam’s latest interview had been on The Ellen Show in December 2010. Sam now has 13 singles, include 2 originals. Fans can listen to his digitally debuted songs online, where his fame began and continues to grow millions at a time.
YouTube Sensation: Meghan Tonjes
Detroit-based artist, Meghan started her YouTube channel in 2006, posting original music and taking requests. Since then she’s had 9 million viewers. She sings covers of artists ranging from Amy Winehouse to Eminem. During her interview with Ellen, Meghan exuded confidence and beautiful energy, tributing her strength to her supportive family and friends. Her angelic voice and acoustic talents, as she says, “breaks your heart the best way possible.”
YouTube Sensation: Maria Aragon
The Canadian, 10-year-old, became a YouTube sensation after she performed Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” and Lady Gaga took noticed of the video and retweeted it. After receiving many e-mail requests from YouTube fans, Ellen invited Maria to her show. During the interview, Maria told Ellen that she chose this song because of its meaning, to her it means, “Just be yourself, because God made you who you are, and you’re no different than anybody else.” Maria now has her own self-titled album. A superstar, she was born this way.
YouTube Sensation: Greyson Chance
And then there’s Greyson Chance, the original YouTube sensation and eleveneeven’s first signed artist. His video of him covering Lady Gaga’s “Paperazzi” at a school talent show went viral and attracted Ellen’s attention.Within days of posting his video, he got everyone exclaiming that he’s the next Justin Bieber. Greyson’s album, “Hold on ’till the Night” debuted in August.
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