I’m not too sure how this one’s managed to stay under the radar. Fifteen-year-old Shannon Saunders has quietly been causing something of a stir on the internet, as her YouTube videos (most of which are of her performing cover versions of other songs) have clocked up a total of almost one million views. Nope, that wasn’t a typo, as at the time of writing her videos have been watched by around 940,000 people. How she’s managed to do this without every single person in Swindon labelling her as ‘the next big thing’ or a ‘one to watch’ is a complete mystery to me.

But this is a massive achievement, especially considering that she only started uploading songs onto YouTube "because it seemed pretty easy to use, and I didn’t know much about any other websites!" It could turn out to be one of the best decisions she’ll ever make though; you only have to look at the success of irritating teen superstar Justin Bieber to see how much impact YouTube can have on a performer’s career (Bieber started building up a fanbase using the website around two years ago).

Some might claim that one of the reasons Shannon is so popular is the fact that she mostly plays other people’s songs, but she claims that her own material has been just as well received by her fans. "The response has surprisingly been really positive, which I’m so grateful for. I was nervous about putting my own material online, as you never know what the outcome will be, but I’m glad I did, because people have really supported it." You only have to listen to ‘This Room’ on her MySpace page (which she’s apparently got her head around now) to see why her own songs are so popular. It shows that she’s more than capable of drawing inspiration from her influences without losing her originality, while also demonstrating that she’s got an ear for some gorgeous harmonies.

She’s not making many live appearances in the next few months, perhaps preferring to perform in the comfort of her own room, but she is playing at Sugarhill Festival on July 31. Until then, you’ll just have to join the thousands of others who have subscribed to her YouTube channel and carry on enjoying her videos.

www.youtube.com/ Shannooonx