NEW YORK - The kids are all right -- at least in the music industry.
Take Justin Bieber: He's 17, has released three platinum efforts, earned Grammy nominations, released a top-selling movie and has sold out arenas around the world, putting him in the elite echelon of pop superstars.
But Bieber isn't the only young singer blazing the charts and outdoing his elders. Scotty McCreery was crowned "American Idol" champion this year and last month, the now 18-year-old became the youngest male to have his debut album open at No. 1 on Billboard's 200 albums chart.
Eleven-year-old Jackie Evancho has sold more than 1.5 million copies of her Christmas EP and her debut album, and has another Christmas project on the way; Willow Smith had grown people dancing in the clubs with her song "Whip My Hair"; and even 14-year-old Rebecca Black, though heavily ridiculed, had a viral hit with her song and music video "Friday."
Taylor Swift was only 16 when she released her 2006 self-titled, now multiplatinum debut. The country star believes young performers shouldn't be boxed into a "kids" category.
"I think an artist represents a certain thing that is all their own, and their age doesn't really have too much to do with it, in my opinion," the 21-year-old said.
Bieber, who came on the scene in 2009, knows fame can be fleeting, so he advises newcomers to "make sure you hold on to it and make sure you remember why you're in this position and not get lost in yourself."
Here's a look at three emerging acts poised to follow in Bieber and Swift's footsteps.
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CODY SIMSPON - 14
Cody Simpson was already a star on the rise, but the addition of Bieber's manager makes his ascension seem guaranteed.
"I'm really excited that we have someone with so much influence, and he definitely, really believes in me," Simpson said of Scooter Braun. "We have big plans for the future."
Like Bieber, Simpson is taking a slow approach with releasing music: He released his first EP last December, and dropped another last month.
"When I put out a full-length album, I want to it to be like, 'Bam!' And I think I definitely put out these two EPs to grow as an artist (and) to figure out my sound," he said.
Simpson's also growing as a person: The Australian traded a life on the beach for the hustle and bustle of New York City.
"It's a very different lifestyle than I was living before," said Simpson, who has surfer-boy looks and stands at 5'10.
His latest EP "Coast to Coast" -- which debuted at No. 12 on the Billboard charts -- ranges from up-tempo pop to R&B-flavoured ballads. He also has a range of musical influences.
"I actually grew up listening to country music," he said. "I was a big fan of Johnny Cash and Keith Urban ... and then I started discovering different genres of music and I started becoming (a) big fan of like Justin Timberlake and Chris Brown."
But Simpson -- who will start to record his first album this month -- says he's leaning toward a sound like Jack Johnson and Bruno Mars.
"That's the type of music I will transition into, or just grow into," he said.
