Second Cup Cafe: Chrisette Michele

So far, 2009 is shaping up to be a very good year for Chrisette Michele.

The 26-year-old singer/songwriter has been described as a "soulful songbird" by Entertainment Weekly.

She won a Grammy Award in February in the Best Urban/Alternative Performance category for her single, "Be OK," featuring will.i.am, and her new album, "Epiphany," debuted as the No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 with 83,000 copies sold in its first week of release.

She's hitting the road later this month for a nationwide tour, but first she stopped by the The Early Show Saturday Edition's "Second Cup Cafe" to perform the title track off her new CD and chat about her career, which began just two years ago.

Often compared to music legends Billie Holiday and Jill Scott, the Long Island native's true favorite is Ella Fitzgerald.

"Be OK" first appeared on her soul-tinged 2007 debut album, "I Am," for which she penned all her own lyrics.

When CNN.com asked her if she has had "a big epiphany recently," she responded, "I have epiphanies all the time, because I'm always thinking. I'm a thinker. I'm always writing poetry, I'm always coming to conclusions.

"The latest epiphany is that I really don't have to be afraid of anybody. And the reason why it was an epiphany was when I first started, I was so afraid that maybe they won't like me. And I was just being myself, I was being really honest. And so I felt that if they didn't like me that would really hurt."