American Idol finalist Covington signs with Mickey

Covington grew up on country music and got his first taste of the stage when, at the age of 19, he got his first guitar and joined the country/southern rock cover band Southern Thunder.

After �American Idol,� Covington toured with his fellow contestants over the summer on a 39-city tour before joining GAC�s Country Music Christmas tour lineup. Covington moved from his hometown of Rockingham, N.C. to Nashville the day after wrapping the GAC tour and has since been recording his debut record.

�It�s so amazing, what �American Idol� can do for a singer,� said Covington. �People don�t realize that when they pick up the phone to vote they�re helping to make someone�s dream come true. So when (Sawyer Brown�s) Mark Miller called me the day after I got voted off �American Idol� to tell me that I sounded great on the show, I couldn�t believe it! Now I�m living in Nashville, signed to Lyric Street Records and getting ready to release my first single and debut album. Man, it�s unbelievable!�

Covington�s debut project is produced by Miller. The debut album scheduled for release on April 17.