Singer, Songwriter Meiko Moving on from Being an Internet Sensation

While the legions of singer/songwriter Meiko's Facebook and MySpace fans love her music, there was a time when hearing Meiko sing wasn't a possibility.

That's because in order to get to where she is today, she had to overcome a severe case of stage fright.

"It was like skydiving to me," Meiko said. "It was my goal to get over that fear, and when I did, everything just started to fall into place."

Before stage fright kept her away from performing, Meiko, now 28, started singing in church in her hometown of Roberta, Georgia. Eventually she learned how to play the guitar, and form there she started writing songs.

After graduating from high school, Meiko moved to Los Angeles with her sister, where she ended up having a lot of free time.

"Being here, I had a lot of time by myself, and that's when I really got into the art of songwriting," Meiko said.

But instead of pursuing singing, she worked as a waitress. She eventually grew tired of waiting tables and decided to finally take the leap toward live performances.

"It was a couple of years after I moved to L.A., I finally got the courage to play an open mic night," Meiko said.

"It was a whole lifetime of stage fright, but I eventually learned to enjoy (performing) instead of being afraid."

And her fans and the music industry are all the better for it. Meiko's songs are both deeply personal, yet incredibly accessible and relatable. All of her songs are based on personal experiences, and while the overall tone of her self-titled debut album is more on the melancholy side, there are some songs where the lyrics have a sense of hope for the future.

Wearing her heart on her sleeve is likely what made Meiko an instant internet sensation when she began uploading her songs to her official MySpace page before she had a record deal.

"I just put a couple songs on there and a couple people would write in that they liked my song," Meiko said. "Eventually it just kept growing, and I had a pretty good fan base."

She initially had a digital release for her album on iTunes in 2007, without any major label support. From there she was approached by several record labels, and she decided to sign with MySpace Records, which was an imprint of Interscope Record.

The record label asked her if she wanted to release an entirely new album, or if she just wanted a larger release of her self-titled album. She decided to stick with her original album, but went in and fine-tuned a few things, including adding the eventual single "Boys with Girlfriends."

"I really just wanted to fix a few things on the record that was already out," Meiko said. "I got to tweak a few things that were bothering me."

And unlike a lot of artists, Meiko got to experience the first release of her album twice, and she wasn't any less nervous or excited the second time around.

"I knew that it was coming out to a bigger audience and it would reach a lot more ears," Meiko said. "As an artist, it is your goal to have your first album released.

"I'm very proud of that record. I'm happy that was the body of work I released."

Songs from her debut album were also feature on several popular television shows, including "Grey's Anatomy," "One Tree Hill," "90210," "Ghost Whisperer" and "The Hills."

"It's awesome," Meiko said. "I feel like T.V. is the new radio. People look to "Grey's Anatomy" and "One Tree Hill" for new music."

She has also performed on "Late Night with Conan O'Brien," "The Bonnie Hunt Show" and "Last Call with Carson Daly."

Meiko also went on a national and international tour to support her debut album, opening up for such acts as Jewel and also touring in Australia and the United Kingdom. She still also regularly performs at The Hotel Café in Los Angeles, where she got her start.

"I loved it," Meiko said of touring. "When I was little I said this is what I want to do so I could travel everywhere."

Now that she has a base to start with, Meiko is hoping for further success as she starts writing new songs for her sophomore album.

"I've been supporting (her debut album) for almost two years, so it's kind of obvious it's time for something new," Meiko said. "People are waiting for new stuff, and I am too."

While she is hoping to expand her sound and grow as an artist, Meiko said her fans shouldn't expect something radically different than her debut album.

"I don't want to go too far outside the box," Meiko said. "Working with different people and being in a different place in my life will be different enough.

"I just want to keep it organic like the first time."

Her fans will be able to keep up with the process of recording the follow-up album, as Meiko regularly updates her MySpace and Facebook accounts, and constantly tweets on Twitter.

"I like being able to reach out to so many people so quickly," Meiko said.

She is hoping to have the album recorded and released by the end of 2010.

In the future, Meiko hopes to be able to tour Japan and have her record released there.

"Being one-quarter Japanese, it would be a cool personal experience," Meiko said. "It would be a really cool place to kind of go see where my background is."

Whatever happens from this point on, she has come a long way from the girl who was afraid to perform in front of people.

"I never really had a limit on what I thought would happen," Meiko said. "My goal was to quit witnessing and just tour for a living."

In March, Meiko will be performing at the SXSW Music Festival in Austin, Texas.

Meiko's Myspace page can be found at www.myspace.com/meiko, and her Facebook page can be found at www.facebook.com/meikomusic.