American Idol eighth-season finalist Allison Iraheta has signed a recording contract with 19 Recordings and is set to start working on her debut album, which will be released by Jive Records and is currently scheduled to drop this fall.

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"I think I'm still in shock that this is happening -- getting to record my first album and this whole awesome experience is a dream come true!" Iraheta said.

Iraheta, a 17-year-old red-haired singer from Downey, CA, has been "singing since she was a toddler," according to her parents, and had wanted to compete on American Idol since she was 9 years old. 

Iraheta finished fourth on Idol's eighth season -- the first season she was old enough to compete on -- last month and was the last female finalist eliminated from the competition.

"Allison is an incredible young singer. She is without a doubt one of the best teenage singers American Idol has ever discovered," American Idol creator and 19 Entertainment founder Simon Fuller said.  "We all watched Allison grow in confidence and stature as she performed each week on the show and we can only imagine how far this special girl can continue to blossom in the years ahead."

"Allison was an absolute stand-out this season," RCA/Jive Label Group chairman and CEO Barry Weiss added. "Her bluesy, powerful voice, spunky attitude, and edgy star power immediately captivated us and it didn't matter where she ranked on Idol, we knew we wanted her to join our amazing crop of young talent at Jive."

Iraheta's signing marks 19 Recordings's third American Idol eighth-season signing announcement in as many days. 

Earlier this week, 19 Recordings also announced that it had signed recording contracts with eighth-season champion Kris Allen and eighth-season runner-up Adam Lambert.  Allen's debut also will also be released by Jive Records while Lambert's will be released by RCA Records.  Similar to Iraheta's debut album, both albums are also currently scheduled to be released this fall.

Iraheta, Allen and Lambert will all be part of this summer American Idol concert tour, which will kick off July 5 in Portland, OR and culminate on September 15 in Manchester, NH.
About The Author: Steven Rogers
Steven Rogers is a senior entertainment reporter for Reality TV World and been covering the reality TV genre for two decades.