This 'Rising Star' May Already Be a YouTube Star

More casual viewers may have missed when Rising Star contestant Morgan Higgins nonchalantly said "that's where I record my YouTube videos" while touring her house in her intro package on last week's final audition episode; but since The Voice's Christina Grimmie-gate, I've been on high alert for budding young YouTube stars entering into the land of singing show opportunity. Good for them! You can get popularity and a solid "Cups" video out of YouTube stardom, but unless you're Justin Bieber, you still have to get a record deal the good old fashioned way — on a TV show.

Morgan was the last contestant to raise the Wall in the audition rounds of Rising Star by giving an impressive, if not a little overly Glee-esque, performance of Heart's "Alone." It's perhaps most impressive that a 17-year-old chose to audition with a Heart song. Even if that wasn't enough for Brad Paisley's right-swipe, it still earned Morgan Ludacris and Kesha's votes, and 79 percent of the audience vote overall. But it seems she's already caught a bit of pre-show attention on her YouTube channel. She's not exactly at Grimmie viewing levels (15 million and counting), but nearly 400,000 views on a Katy Perry cover is nothing to laugh at. Learn a little more about Morgan from her YouTube page before she heads into the battle rounds next week.

Her first video is one of her most popular

Morgan uploaded the first YouTube video in 2011, singing the reliable "Climb" by Miley Cyrus. It's edging up on 200,000 views, which is not too shabby for a 14-year-old with a keyboard.

She was away for awhile

Until last week, Morgan hadn't uploaded a video for six months because she was working on a "special project." Guess what it was?

She's Savvy with Search Engines

On the night of her Rising Star audition, Morgan's most popular video (almost 400,000 views) was still titled as a Perez Hilton cover contest submission. But girl knows the power of Google, and now it's much more simply labeled: "Katy Perry - The One That Got Away Cover (Live by Morgan Higgins)."

It's Not Just Covers

Her most popular videos are covers, but Morgan has some pretty angsty teen originals too (and an equally angsty music video!).

And, of course, the requisite Adele piano cover...

...and Les Mis. Because every teenage girl should pretend they're Éponine and have a good cry

Image: ABC