An Auckland singer has joined the ranks of Lady Gaga and Katy Perry after being singled out by Hollywood blogger Perez Hilton.

Jamie McDell was praised by the star-maker after she entered his regular Can You Sing cover song competition.

Hilton called for singers all over the world to send him their version of One Direction's song One Thing.

While McDell didn't win the competition, she was among a handful of honourable mentions.

He wrote: "Jamie McDell's cover reminds us of Jewel. And that's a good thing!"

The Mangawhai 19-year-old wrote her own lyrics into the song and says she was surprised even to be mentioned by the blogger.

"I'm really flattered.  I think it's great and I'm really grateful that he took the time to watch the video and put it up online."

Three years ago, the then-schoolgirl was signed to a development deal with EMI.  McDell's first single You'll Never Take That Away went to number eight on the New Zealand charts in April.

The singer-songwriter is set to record her debut album later this year and says the boost from Hilton will help her career along.

"I guess it kind of gives you street cred.  You can be like 'look, I'm on Perez'."

This latest round in the regular competition was the biggest to date on Hilton's blog, with more than double the previous number of entries.

"We sat through soooo many takes on One Thing - including a lot of really bad ones - and these are the best of the bunch," he wrote.

Hilton has famously ear-marked Katy Perry, Lady Gaga and even our own Ladyhawke, Kimbra and Zowie as singers to watch.

- © Fairfax NZ News

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