YouTube star Alyssa Reid nominated for “New Artist of the Year” at the 2012 Junos

Grace Stanisci

Two years ago, Alyssa Reid, was just a 16-year-old covering Justin Bieber's "One Less Lonely Girl" on her YouTube channel. Now she is nominated in the same category that Bieber was during the 2010 Juno Awards, "New Artist of the Year."

One Less Lonely Girl (Female Version) Alyssa Reid vs. Justin Bieber

We caught up with Reid during yesterday's Juno Nomination Press Conference in Toronto and she reflected on that fateful cover track saying, "I had no intentions, I didn't even want my friends to see it. It was kind of a spur of the moment 'Oh Justin Bieber, I like this song, let me write a female version because I can't find one and throw it up [on YouTube] and see what happens.'"

However, the young songstress never imagined that her clip would get her discovered, adding, "I wasn't expecting anything. I wasn't expecting anyone to view it. I didn't even brush my hair in the video. I was wearing some pink fluffy shirt and now that I think about it, I probably should have put a bit more thought into that."

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Since her YouTube debut, Reid's single, "Alone Again," reached platinum status in Canada and propelled her to the top of Billboard's "Emerging Artists" chart for 26 consecutive weeks. This past year, she co-wrote Adriiana's (a fellow Wax Records label-mate) new song, "We Are Young," which will be featured in the "Keeping Up with the Kardashian's" spin-off, "Khloé and Lamar."

Reid says she enjoys working with other artists, saying, "My entire label is almost entirely singer-songwriter and everybody kind of gets together and has a big writing session. We had a party two weeks ago and somehow everyone ended up in the studio writing, singing, playing and jamming. Everybody is really close and loves working together."

Being nominated for "New Artist of the Year" at the Junos is an amazing way to start 2012. However, Reid hasn't let this honour go to her head and says that she recognizes that she owes a lot to her fans. Upon hearing of her nomination, she expressed her gratitude, saying, "I just want to say thank you. A year ago I was a girl working at Tim Hortons and putting cover [songs] up on YouTube and because of their views and their support and coming out to my shows, I feel like I'm honestly living the dream. I just want to thank them."

Reid will tour the U.K. this spring and be sure to tune in and see if she comes up a winner during the 2012 Juno Awards on April 1. For now, check out her platinum selling single, "Alone Again."

Alyssa Reid — "Alone Again"