It’s a good time for country music when Seleen McAlister steps up on stage! Her star is on the rise with a whirlwind year up her sleeve and her sights firmly set on cementing her name in the country music scene. She’s been singing and playing tirelessly for the past 12 months and her song Guilt-Free continues to climb the CMC charts. Seleen’s ability to give her audience a fantastic show has ensured she’s being personally invited to appear on the main stage at festivals around Australia this year, with bookings in place for 2013 already. With her dynamic and energetic stage presence, Seleen puts her all in to each performance and has gained acclaim from booking agents and hoteliers across the east coast of Australia. A committed performer, she is gigging on average four nights each week around the Brisbane region, to Bundaberg and beyond as well as being in high demand for private functions. Seleen first caught the eye of country music powerbrokers last year when her entry to the Maton Talent Search at the Gympie Muster left the judges’ jaws on the ground with her energetic performance, astounding voice and captivating songwriting. Winning the 2011 Optus Gympie Music Muster's Maton Talent Search competition saw her invited onto Main Stage at Optus Gympie Music Muster this year to perform songs from her current EP – Worth the Wait. Guilt Free, her first music clip, was sitting at number 14 in mid-October after entering the charts at the end of 2011. The Golden Guitar Award-winning Duncan Toombs produced the clip which played regularly on the Country Music Channel. Uploaded in August, the clip has received well over 1000 views on YouTube at the end of October. Seleen joined up with country music royalty Bill Chambers who helped her write the EP Worth the Wait and he also produced the four-track album with Lee Kernaghan’s former guitarist, Rob Black. The acclaimed Jeff McCormack mastered the EP and is lined up for the next project, Seleen’s first studio album – which is due for release in 2013. He will be joined with the likes of Chris Rodriguez (guitarist to Kelly Clarkson, Faith Hill and formerly, Keith Urban) and a swag of talented musicians from Australia and Nashville. She has toured with award-winning artist Bill Chambers throughout 2012 in Brisbane as well as Doug Bruce, nominee in the CMC Artist of the Year and Music Video of the Year for 2012. Seleen grew up in various places in Queensland, calling the sugar cane capital of Ayr in Far North Queensland “home” as well as Brisbane, bridging the urban/rural divide and giving her plenty of inspiration for a life of storytelling through music. Her love of country is showcased in her song writing and music that traverse the landscapes and the lifestyles of this great land. Seleen freely admits her sound and style continues to evolve, that it’s a ‘work in progress’ and that her influences continue to change and grow with each new meeting and experience she has. Whatever the sound, the thing that never changes with this upcoming star, is the fact that her songs and stories remain honest to who she is. The married mother of three finds inspiration from the joy of her family. Having met her husband twenty two years ago and then losing her mother to illness, matters of the heart and of love provide the talented songwriter with a vault of material that she finds easy to pen. The spotlight is shining on Seleen and she is grabbing the opportunities that come her way with both hands, determined to cement her place in Australian Country Music as a hard-working, honest, humble and great performer and singer/songwriter.