Austin singer signs national deal

Usually there are several career steps between gigs at the divey Poodle Dog Lounge and a deal with a nationally distributed Nashville label. But nascent Austin country singer Sunny Sweeney made that giant leap this week by signing with Big Machine Records, which brought Austin's Jack Ingram to No. 1 earlier this year. The label will release Sweeney's already-recorded debut "Heartbreaker's Hall Of Fame" March 6.

Todd V. Wolfson

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Sweeney began performing in front of audiences only two years ago. "In nearly 40 years in the music business," Sweeney's manager John Lomax III said, "I've never seen anything happen like this." Sweeney, who has only been performing for two years, plays the Poodle Dog every Sunday night through Dec. 17.