Mike Wild, manager of CiCi's Pizza in Fort Oglethorpe, has got to chuckle when he ponders the sudden success of his weekend employee, Lauren alaina Suddeth.

"Now We have thoughts like, 'I could possibly have asked the subsequent 'American Idol' to brush crumbs up up," he joked.

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Wild is just one of several local venue managers well isn't Lauren alaina Suddeth before she took over as female front-runner on Season 10 of "American Idol." They knew the 16-year-old before she shared a spontaneous duet with Aerosmith's Steven Tyler, before she sang weekly in 26 million homes.

Suddeth advanced last week on the fourth and final Hollywood Round of "American Idol," which will air Wednesday at 8 p.m. on Fox. The Top 20 semifinalists will probably be revealed Thursday night.

Suddeth, daughter of Kristy and J.J. Suddeth of Rossville, honed her talent on stages from North Georgia to Nashville's Tootsie's Orchid Lounge.

She sang every Wednesday night for four years at Magoo's on Ringgold Road until she qualified for your Hollywood round on "AI." She's also performed at Sing It or Fluked it in downtown Chattanooga.

Suddeth was the first winner with the WinnieStar youth talent contest at Lake Winnepesaukah in '09.

"She stood a very mature stage presence to be with her early age," recalls Talley Green, Lake Winnie spokeswoman. "It was clear she was going places; we simply did not know it would be 'American Idol.'"

Jason Phibbs, owner of Acoustic Cafe in Ringgold, Ga., said Suddeth sang in his venue a half-dozen times before she appeared on "American Idol."

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"We couldn't know she was auditioning in Nashville. Her last show was just before Christmas, and that we knew something was up, but they were really tight-lipped," said Phibbs.

Phibbs confirmed rumors that an "AI" crew was to his cafe to tape a segment following your teen made it to Hollywood.

Phibbs said he booked Suddeth last year after her dad were only available in and asked him to let the teen sing. He paid attention to her CDs, asked if she could draw a crowd, then gave her a trial.

"She brought in about 100 family and friends," he was quoted saying. "I thought it was incredible she was 15," he explained of her performance.

Backing her on four of the gigs at Acoustic Cafe was 25-year-old guitarist Josh Pettyjohn, as well as Suddeth's dad on guitar.

"She's got an excellent personality plus a great voice to select it," said Pettyjohn. "She perform onlookers. I think she's a fantastic performer on her age. Whatever the design; she can perform range of music."

Wild agrees Suddeth can wow an audience. He watched her work the bottom throughout the job at CiCi's.

"She was always singing around the store, while stocking the salad bar," he said. "People noticed her."

Although Suddeth hasn't worked there since "American Idol" began airing, Wild said customers still can be found in hoping they could get a peek in the teen singer.

"There's not really a day goes by that somebody doesn't ask about her. She's a unique girl," Wild said.

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