With an upbeat country rock single on the air and an Indiana University softball scholarship awaiting her, Casey Jamerson is a Hoosier Hannah Montana.

The 18-year-old singer just graduated from Pendleton Heights High School and is spending the summer playing festivals and showcases around the Midwest on the strength of her single, "I Miss You Already."

Thanks to her father's network of friends, the song landed in the mitts of 97.1 Hank FM's programming director. The song, by Nashville, Tenn., tunesmith Gary Cotton, is the perfect showcase for the upbeat alto. Considering how many recording artists rely on studio wizardry, some listeners might assume that this cute and bubbly girl is the product of a Music City hit machine.

But she's for real -- she's got a voice that'll knock you off balance if you aren't paying attention, and she projects an easy charisma that country fans eat up like grits and gravy.

It's still to be determined whether Jamerson will spend more time on the tour bus or the team bus over the next four years, but chances are you'll be hearing about her no matter which path she chooses.

The talented teen took time to talk with Indy.com about how she got into the music business, how she plans to pursue music, school, Big Ten softball and more.

On how she started singing:

"I sang in talent shows, sang in church, I sang all the time, as much as I possibly could.

"We had a friend who went to Belmont University in Nashville, Tenn. She came back and asked if I wanted to do a four-song demo..... It was a project she was working on for free. Well, we did it and I fell in love with (making music in Nashville), I fell in love with people in the music business, I fell in love with recording."

On recording other people's songs:

"Songwriters don't like you to change the melody, but they want you to put your own twist on it. It is a little more difficult than singing your own songs."

On juggling music with Big Ten softball:

"I worked out something with the (IU) coach, Stacy Phillips, but we got a new (coach). We'll see what happens. If all else fails, I'll have to pick one. I don't know which one I'd pick yet, but for now we're going to try all of them.

"The music business is very sketchy, and it's something you don't want to drop everything for. If I get to the point where I'll be well off for the rest of my life doing music, then music will be the thing because I love it. If not, there's always law school."

On missing out on regular teenage life:

"I love my life, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. I am getting to experience everything that I love and everything that I've dreamed of since I was a little girl.

"There are times when I don't get to do as much normal teenage stuff, but that's OK because (other teenagers) don't get to do the kind of stuff that I get to do. Every time I'm onstage, I feel like, 'This is home, this is where I belong.'."

See a show

A sample of upcoming Casey Jamerson performances:

June 28: Boondocks Farms God and Country Festival, Knightstown.

July 10: "Stop & Smell the Roses" open-house benefit for women's health issues, Clarian West Hospital, Indianapolis, 7 p.m.

Aug. 9: Indiana State Fair Main Street Stage acoustic performance, 4 and 6.p.m. For more info on Jamerson, her tour schedule and her music, visit www.myspace.com/caseyjamerson