Billboard announced today (Sept. 28) pop sensation Lady Gaga will be named its "Rising Star" at the 2009 Billboard Women In Music event, taking place on Oct. 2nd in New York City. The Billboard Rising Star Award rewards artists that have achieved a level of success and proven to have vast potential in the early stages of their career.
Lady Gaga is the undisputed break-out star of the year for many reasons, including the success of her debut album, "The Fame" (Streamline Records), which has spawned four Billboard Hot 100 hit singles like "Just Dance" and "Poker Face," both which reached No. 1 on the tally. "Just Dance" and "Poker Face" are also the Nos. 2 and 8 best-selling digital songs of all time, with 4.6 million and 4 million downloads, respectively.
Gaga recently became the third artist in the history of the Mainstream Top 40 Airplay chart to have three No. 1 singles from a debut album. "The Fame" is also the best-selling album from a debut artist for 2009, with 1,441,000 copies sold in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In addition to writing all the tracks on her album, Lady Gaga has previously written for Britney Spears, the Pussycat Dolls, and New Kids on the Block.