By definition, Samantha Shelton is a singer-songwriter, but Shelton plays the ukulele instead of the guitar, and this fact alone is enough to elevate her song material above the tired singer-songwriter genre. By definition, Shelton is also a born-and-bred-in-LA actress (her credits include One Tree Hill and ShopGirl), but she grew up in Eagle Rock with un-famous parents, which lends her enough organic street credentials to defy the Angeleno-actress cliché.

Originally one-half of the hit cabaret duo If All the Stars Were Pretty Babies, Shelton is now striking out on her own with her debut album, Are You Kidding Around?, due out January ‘09 on new label Eagle Ear. Shelton’s four-song EP, Good Morning Tonight, is already available on the Eagle Ear website, and it’s a tempting sneak-peek at an artist who just might be Los Angeles’s answer to the quirky-girl soul-singer movement that’s been going on in Britain (Lily Allen, Amy Winehouse, Joss Stone, Duffy) for a few years now.

As a resident and die-hard fan of Los Angeles, I’m always excited to discover new artists who share my love affair with this place. For that reason, I always wanted to jump on the Rilo Kiley bandwagon, but Jenny Lewis’s voice was always a bit too self-conscious and serious for my tastes. When Are You Kidding Around? is released in January 2009, LA may have found its answer to the Brits, and I may have found my answer to Jenny Lewis.

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