To be Blunt, Katie'e eye on us

Quoted from: http://www.sundaylife.co.uk

'By John McGurk13 August 2006
Ulster songbird Katie Melua is aiming to emulate James Blunt's Stateside chart success.
For the Belfast educated singer/songwriter has the notoriously hard-to-crack American market in her sights - after posh English pop star Blunt recently hit the top of the US charts with You're Beautiful.
Katie, who celebrates her 22nd birthday next month, has just completed a series of major US arena dates with the Simon Cowell-devised opera pop outfit, Il Divo.
The beautiful former Belfast schoolgirl earned standing ovations at those shows, as well as at a prestige sold-out date at BB King's Blues Club & Grill in New York.
Georgian-born Katie has notched up massive sales in Europe with her albums Call Off The Search and Piece By Piece.
But, with two UK chart topping sets under her belt, Melua wants to conquer American hearts with her quiet, heartfelt mix of jazz, folk and blues.
Melua's mentor, Mike Batt, has spent the last three months in New York, spending an estimated $$1 million - in a bid to avoid repeating Robbie Williams reputation as an American 'flop star'
An optimistic Batt told The Guardian newspaper: "If another person says 'Robbie Williams' to me, I'll hit them. I'll scream.
"It's become a thing for Americans to say, just to knock you down a peg or two. But for every Robbie Williams there's a James Blunt'."
Added Melua's record label boss, manager and sometime-songwriter: "There is every chance it will happen this time.
"But if it doesn't, we will be back. Relentlessness is the key."
And the beautiful Melua herself has nothing but songs of praise for Batt's ambitious US battle plan.
Said Katie: "Mike definitely has a controlling streak in him. But so do I, and I don't mind having a perfectionist working with me because I am the same way."
"It's quite exciting to be introducing my music to people who haven't heard it before, because in England there's an attitude of 'so, what are you going to do next?' There's a bit of pessimism that you can feel. But over here it's completely fresh. It's like going back in time."
In the meantime, Melua is gearing herself up for the release of a new UK single, It's Only Pain, on September 11.'