An Indian Hills eighth-grader’s star is on the rise. Savannah Keyes, a 13-year-old singer, was plucked from obscurity to perform last week on the talk show “Ellen.”

The producers of Ellen DeGeneres’ Emmy-winning daytime talk show spotted Savannah’s performances on YouTube, were impressed by her vocal ability and decided to book her as a musical artist. The show, which featured a stage-savvy Savannah belting out the Dixie Chicks hit “Let ‘Er Rip,” aired last Wednesday. 

This is Savannah’s biggest performance to date, although she was the opening act for Peter Cetera, former lead singer of the band Chicago, when he appeared last year in concert at the Sandy Amphitheater. She’s also performed the national anthem at a Real Salt Lake soccer game at Rio Tinto Stadium and the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns for the world speed-skating championships.

Savannah, who aims to be a Taylor Swift-like pop-country ingenue, says she spoke with DeGeneres quite a bit and called her very nice and “down to earth.”  She didn’t, however, get to meet the other guests that day – R&B singer Macy Gray and “Jersey Shore” star Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi.

“We really are just trying to absorb all that has happened,” says Savannah’s mother, Jennifer.  “It was such a whirlwind.  It was such a shock that they called.”

Here is Savannah performing on “Ellen.”  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=juqYRYS5PWg