Kellie Dawn Pickler is 19 years old and is from Albemarle, NC. Singing "before she could talk" (according to Kellie), Kellie has not had an easy life. But one thing is true: Kellie can sing. Up until she tried out for American Idol Season 5 in Greensboro, NC - she lived with her grandfather. After losing her grandmother 2 years ago and working at Sonic, Kellie decided to make a better life for herself by trying out for American Idol. In February of 2006, Kellie made the top 14 finalists of American Idol out of hundreds of thousands of hopefuls.

As part of it's efforts to promote support for Kellies' bid to be the next American Idol. The city of Albemarle, the county of Stanly and all it's residents are encouraging all Kellie fans to show their support by wearing a Hot Pink Ribbon Lapel Pin . The color is " Hot Pink " and shouldn't be confused with the " Baby Pink " used for Breast Cancer Awareness.

Some links to find information about Kellie and downtown Albemarle:

American Idol             Albemarle Downtown Development Corporation            Kelliefans