Jackson Free Press

Sarah Restuccio was only 17 years old when she appeared on Season 12 of Fox's soon-to-end singing show, "American Idol," but she made an impression. After Restuccio delivered a rendition of Carrie Underwood's "Mama's Song," judge Randy Jackson asked to hear another. She responded with a performance of "Super Bass" by judge Nicki Minaj, who beamed as the young girl who grew up in Hammonton, N.J., rapped her hit song. Jackson's response: a mixture of confusion and fascination.

While Restuccio was cut from the show during Hollywood Week, that first introduction to her musical duality turned out to be a pretty accurate depiction of what was to come. Now, three years later, she performs under the moniker Sarah Ross, and blending sweet country melodies with swift hip-hop verses has become her calling card.

Ross says: "I took the words from Nikki Minaj when she told me, 'Don't change for anyone. Be who you want to be.' That's what I try to do with the whole rap thing, keeping that in my music. It doesn't interest everyone, but I love it, so I think that's all that matters."

Her love of both genres precedes her TV appearance, though. She fell in love with country music by listening to it with her family, and she latched onto hip-hop throughout school. Ross says she doesn't want to take away from country, but melding the two styles is a fair representation of what many modern music fans like.

"I see people and friends my age and what they listen to," she says. "One station in their car is country, one station is rock, one station is rap, and it's all over the place. I always want (country) to keep its roots, but I know the genre is changing. I feel like I'm just trying to stay ahead of the game and going for what the next best thing would be."

Evolving from Sarah Restuccio to Sarah Ross was a quick transition for the young singer. Only a few weeks after her stint on "American Idol," Shannon Houchins, founder of Average Joes Entertainment Group, asked to meet with Ross in Nashville. That same day, she entered the studio for the first time. She released her debut EP, "Calm Before the Storm," with the label in July 2015 and says she's preparing to hit the studio again soon.

"With my EP, I feel like it was super dynamic," Ross says. "I go from 'Happy Hour' being a ballad to 'Shotgun' being intense and kind of like a 'Dude, watch out,' song. But I honestly think how (a release) varies gives people a lot of different looks at an artist. So I think staying with one specific style but continuing to put a variety of different things on my next EP would make a difference."

In the past year, she has performed around the country alongside labelmates Colt Ford and The Lacs, the latter of whom will perform with Ross at her stop in Jackson on Friday, Feb. 19. Touring has allowed her to travel to states that she's never been to before, she says, even if her music made it there first.

"The craziest thing for me is, of course, working with Colt and The Lacs, they have fans high and low, everywhere—hardcore, die-hard fans," Ross says. "So going to these places with them, it's just cool that (audiences) know some of my music. I'm not going to lie, every time I'm onstage and play with those guys somewhere and people know my song 'Shotgun,' I want to cry."

Sarah Ross performs at 8 p.m. Friday, Feb. 19, at Pop's Saloon (2636 S. Gallatin St., 601-961-4747). For more information, visit sarahrossmusic.com.