'Colbie from MySpace' finds fame with help from her friends

Colbie Caillat went from MySpace hopeful to major-label artist within a year on the strength of her hit "Bubbly."

Colbie Caillat (rhymes with "valet") is from California. But sometimes when she encounters fans of the laid-back, R&B-tinged pop of her 2007 debut album "Coco" they believe her hometown is MySpace. The 22-year-old singer-songwriter caused such a stir on the social networking site with her songs - uploaded by her friend Dom - that she went from bedroom composer to major-label artist within a year. Since then she's toured with the Goo Goo Dolls and cruised with John Mayer, for whom she'll open this summer. The root of all this good fortune is Caillat's sexy, playful, and inescapable hit song "Bubbly," which describes the toes-to-nose giddiness brought on by the first rush of love. (Or maybe something else.)

We chatted with Caillat, who plays the Orpheum Theatre tomorrow night, about success, stage fright, and songwriting.

Q. "Bubbly" was a huge success, but are you secretly relieved that your second single, "Realize," is finally making inroads at radio?

A. I thought it would because all my fans on MySpace chose that song [as the second single]. When we do it live everyone freaks out so we thought for sure it would do well.

Q. In a way, you're blazing a new marketing trail by letting your My-Space friends/fans dictate what the singles will be.

A. Yeah, which I actually think is the coolest thing ever because they're the ones that are listening on the radio, watching the music videos, buying the albums.

Q. So do people actually refer to you as "Colbie from MySpace" as if it's a place, like Indiana?

A. (Laughs) Yeah, it's really funny.

Q. You credit your dad, Ken Caillat (co-producer of Fleetwood Mac's "Rumors"), with pushing you into becoming a musician and songwriter. As a singer, was that not something that just naturally occurred for you?

A. No, I never thought of it that way; all I cared for was melodies. I loved singing, I was lazy, and I didn't want to learn to play an instrument. I never really listened to the lyrics. My problem was that I was shy. My dad knew that I could sing but I'm not like those divas that love being up on stage and could make it only with singing. So he told me about songwriting and told me please just learn how to play an instrument. . . . Of course it took me years to listen to him. But the one time I did, after my first guitar lesson, I went home and wrote a song. And that's when I realized wow, OK, I can write a song in an hour with four chords. What can I do if I keep doing this?

Q. Has your stage fright begun to lessen now that you're performing on a regular basis?

A. It depends, usually it's not fun. I always start having fun toward the second half because that's when my band and I really let loose. TV performances I hate and I usually cry right before I go on stage because I don't want to do it. College shows, I love it because my fans are there, they're singing along, and they make me feel comfortable. Now I understand why people drink before they go on stage. (Laughs)

Q. What's your liquid courage of choice?

A. Grey Goose and Vitamin Water. Vodka's the most healthy. I honestly don't drink that much. I like beer but it's really filling.

Q. On first listen "Bubbly" sounds so sweet and innocent but by the 10th listen you do start wondering: Is this song about sex?

A. (Laughs) Everyone asks that, it's so funny! No, it's not. That song is not about an experience or relationship. I was bored and hadn't had a boyfriend for a while, had never been in love, and I think I was kind of sad. I started playing guitar and the first verse and chorus just came out in like 20 minutes. The lyrics just came creatively to me thinking, "What would I want love to be like?"

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