Scotty McCreery Informations

Scott Cooke McCreery (born October 9, 1993) is an American country music singer. He won the tenth season of American Idol on May 25, 2011.

His debut studio album, Clear as Day, was released in October 2011 and was certified platinum in the United States. The album includes the top 20 country songs, "I Love You This Big" and "The Trouble with Girls". McCreery released a Christmas album, Christmas with Scotty McCreery, in October 2012 and it has been certified gold. He released his third album, See You Tonight, in October 2013. The first single from the album, also called "See You Tonight", became his first song to reach the top ten on Billboard's Country charts. Setting a new record in July 2017 with his single "Five More Minutes", McCreery became the only country music artist in Country Aircheck/Mediabase history to chart a song without the backing of a record label; it topped Billboard in February 2018. His most recent album, Seasons Change, was released in March 2018 which became McCreery's fourth top 10 album in the United States.

McCreery was born on October 9, 1993, in Garner, North Carolina, the son of Judy (née Cooke) and Michael McCreery. His parents originally planned on naming him Evan, but changed their minds as they were on their way to the hospital. McCreery is of one quarter Puerto Rican descent; his father, a manufacturing systems analyst for Schneider Electric, was born in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, to his military father and a Puerto Rico born mother from San Juan, both of whom later moved to Aberdeen, North Carolina. McCreery's mother is a real estate agent for Fonville Morisey. She also owns a tanning salon in Clayton, North Carolina, called At the Beach. McCreery's older sister, Ashley, attended UNC Charlotte. Both were raised in Garner.

Around the age of five or six, McCreery received a book about Elvis from his grandmother, and Elvis became McCreery's earliest musical influence. He began learning guitar when he was around nine or ten years old.

McCreery attended Timber Drive Elementary School in Garner, West Lake Middle School in Apex, and Garner Magnet High School . He participated in all three schools' choruses, and he also sang at his middle school graduation. He sang tenor as a freshman in high school, where he was named Rookie of the Year. In his sophomore year, he switched to singing bass and began singing in his church. He also starred in a school production of Bye Bye Birdie that year, playing the role of Conrad Birdie. McCreery went on to join a vocal ensemble called Die Meistersingers that was formed by his high school chorus teacher, Meredith Clayton, and with which he performed across the United States.

In 2009, McCreery won a singing contest called "Clayton Idol", which was held by WQDR-FM at the Clayton Harvest Festival in Clayton, North Carolina. After winning, he held several local shows with the radio station, raising money for sick children. Later the same year, he was one of thirty-six finalists in a contest called Rip the Hallways, which featured teenage vocalists from across North Carolina. On the eve of Valentine's Day, 2010, McCreery performed in a variety show called Gift 4, which was held by the town of Garner. In April of that year, he performed at the second annual Boots, Bands, and Bulls benefit concert. Funds from the concert went to Brittany's Battle, a Garner-based nonprofit that supports those affected by cancer. The concert was held in Raleigh, and country singer Jason Michael Carroll also performed.

Growing up, McCreery attended First Baptist Church in Garner. He led the church's youth praise band, Audience of One. In addition to his musical pursuits, McCreery was a member of his high school baseball team. His coach, Derik Goffena said of him, "He doesn't throw terribly hard. His best pitch is a curveball as far as getting people out. If he had to start he probably wouldn't walk more than one or two in a game." McCreery was working as a bagger at Lowes Foods when he auditioned for American Idol.

McCreery auditioned for the tenth season of American Idol in Milwaukee, at the age of sixteen. He originally planned on auditioning in Nashville, but decided not to when he discovered that the date conflicted with an annual church camp. He sang "Your Man" by Josh Turner and "Put Some Drive in Your Country" by Travis Tritt for his audition, and then reprised "Your Man" for his first Hollywood Week performance. For the subsequent Group Round, he joined with Jacee Badeaux, Frances Coontz, Clint Jun Gamboa, and Monique de los Santos. Calling themselves "The Guaps", they chose to perform "Get Ready" by The Temptations. However, during a late stage of their preparation, Gamboa decided that Badeaux was not contributing enough to the group and forced him to leave. Before the performance, McCreery apologized to the judges for letting this happen. All five singers advanced to the next round.

For his second Hollywood Week solo performance, McCreery sang "I Hope You Dance" by Lee Ann Womack. He was not familiar with the lyrics and forgot them onstage. Afterward, he said that he did not feel that he deserved to go forward in the competition. The judges decided to give him another chance though, and following a well-received performance of Josh Turner's "Long Black Train", selected him as one of the twenty-four contestants that would move forward to the voting rounds of the competition.

McCreery did not venture far out of the country genre throughout the competition, although one of his most acclaimed performances was of Carole King's "You've Got a Friend". Taking note of season eight winner Kris Allen's success with a stripped-down version of the rap song "Heartless", McCreery considered doing an acoustic version of a hip-hop or RandB song, such as "So Sick" by Ne-Yo or something by Charlie Wilson. Instead, he went with Montgomery Gentry's "Gone", a country song with rap-like cadences. It was regarded by some as his best moment of the finals.

On making the Top 3, McCreery and the other remaining finalists earned celebratory hometown visits. While back in Garner, McCreery made an appearance at his high school's prom, threw the first pitch at a baseball game between the North Carolina State Wolfpack and the Florida State Seminoles, and performed for a crowd of around thirty-thousand at Lake Benson Park. He was joined by his guitar teacher, Gary Epperson and Epperson's band, Gavinhart. As McCreery was singing Josh Turner's "Your Man", Turner himself surprised McCreery onstage and joined him for the song.

McCreery entered the finale with fellow country singer Lauren Alaina, with whom he had shared duets several times that season. This was the youngest match-up in the history of the series. Alaina was sixteen at the time, and McCreery had turned seventeen since auditioning. He went on to become the series' youngest male winner and second youngest winner overall, after season six's Jordin Sparks, who was also seventeen when she won. Because of his age, McCreery had to have one of his parents live with him throughout the competition; usually his mother. They lived in a mansion with the other contestants for a short time, but moved into an apartment of their own before the end of the series.

McCreery released his coronation single "I Love You This Big" immediately after winning the tenth season of American Idol. The song entered the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart at number 32, becoming the highest debut for a debut single since the chart converted to BDS data the week of January 20, 1990. The song sold 171,404 units in its first week, and was certified gold on August 25, 2011. A music video for the song, shot on Angels Point near Dodger Stadium, was released on August 9, 2011.

He signed with Mercury Nashville, earning a contract that gave him over $250,000 in advances for recording the first album.

Both McCreery and Lauren Alaina were invited to present at the CMT Music Awards on June 8, 2011, and they also both performed on the Grand Ole Opry on June 10. McCreery performed "I Love You This Big" and George Strait's song "Check Yes or No." Their trip to Nashville was also featured later in an ABC Special CMA Music Fest: Country's Night to Rock where McCreery performed "Your Man" with Josh Turner at the CMA Music Festival.

McCreery toured with the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2011, which began in West Valley City, Utah on July 6, 2011 and ended in Manila, Philippines on September 21, 2011.

McCreery recorded Tim McGraw's "Please Remember Me" and it was released on March 8, 2012. It was used as the exit song on the eleventh season of American Idol.

McCreery's debut album, titled Clear as Day, was released on October 4, 2011. Tracks from the album include a song from Keith Urban, and the title track "Clear as Day". McCreery aimed to include an explicitly Christian song in that album and he included the song "Old King James," which dwells on a Bible being passed down for generations. On October 3, 2011, the day before his debut album was scheduled to be released, GAC premiered a TV special, Introducing: Scotty McCreery.

The album sold 197,000 on its debut week, and McCreery made history as the first country act to debut at No. 1 on Billboard 200 with their first studio album, as well as the youngest man to open at the top of the chart with his debut release. It reached No. 1 on five separate Billboard charts - Billboard 200, Top Current Albums, Digital Albums, Internet Albums, and Top Country Albums. With the debut album Clear as Day reaching number one on the Billboard 200, he joined Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Clay Aiken, Carrie Underwood, Chris Daughtry and Adam Lambert as the only Idol contestants to have a number one album. Clear as Day has since been certified platinum with over 1 million units shipped.

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