KELLIE LYNNE Singer enjoys Ohio experience, headlines gig at The Cellar

The Pittsburgh native was inspired by the likes of Shania Twain and Faith Hill.
By JOHN BENSON
VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT
Youngstown loves Kellie Lynne.
After her Mahoning County debut a few weeks ago opening for the Povertyneck Hillbillies, the 21-year-old aspiring country music singer and Pittsburgh native is returning to the scene of the crime for her own headlining gig Friday at The Cellar.
You have to think it was a pretty good experience considering the show was her first time performing in Ohio.
"That was awesome and so much fun," said Lynne, calling from her home.
"The fans definitely fed off the energy coming off the stage from the band and it was just a good time. And when I got offstage, people came up and wanted autographs and asked a lot of questions. It was pretty cool."
Upstart singer
Performing since age 7, Lynne eschewed pursuing musical theater in college to concentrate on her dreams of one day conquering Nashville. While only a half-day's drive away, Music City might as well be on the moon right now, but the upstart singer is proudly inching herself closer to recognition with each live show.
"I'm know that I'm getting myself in a hard business," Lynne said. "In Nashville, you can pull any girl off the street and she wants to be a singer, just like me. But I've been through a lot growing up singing and I'm used to the competition. It's just something I want really bad."
Inspired by the likes of Shania Twain and Faith Hill, the singer has recorded several demos, as well as a self-titled album that is now available on her Web site (www.kellielynne.com). The full length release features a few covers and originals from Nashville songwriters, but eventually Lynne hopes to record her own material, which she began writing recently.
Family business
For now, it's a family business, with her mom (Wendy Schriver) booking the shows and her dad (Robert Schriver) running sound and lights.
"I'm really lucky to have such a supportive family," Lynne said.
Having visited Nashville a few times, Lynne has learned the hard way there are snakes in the business. A former Music City manager's promises of a record deal and touring schedule turned out to be lies, but the singer chalks up the entire endeavor as a learning experience.
Tough lesson
"That happened to me last year, but we ended up making a lot of good connections and he definitely taught myself and my family a lot about the music industry," Lynne said. "It just made me stronger and I know now to keep my guard up a little bit better."
She added, "I'm ready to go. I've never told myself I'm going to give up if I don't reach my goal, or if I'm not a Nashville recording artist by next year. It's just something that I know I have to do. If it takes 10 years, it takes 10 years. I'm ready to give it my all."