Internet sensation Greyson Chance could be the next big thing

To be the next big YouTube splash, have some natural talent, and then add one part Justin Bieber and one part Lady Gaga.

That's what Greyson Chance did a few weeks ago, and it's definitely worked out for him.

Greyson Chance? Who's that? Only the pre-teen YouTube boy wonder who rocks Justin Bieber's haircut and sounds like Lady Gaga.

Justin Bieber is, of course, that teenage boy pop star with diehard fans and some seriously stylized hair. And if you don't know who Lady Gaga is, well, I don't know where to start.

Greyson Chance has just wrapped up sixth grade in Edmond, Okla.

He performed Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi" for a school talent show and posted the video on YouTube.

Not only does he mimic her voice pretty perfectly, he also plays a mean piano.

In fact, I'm not sure what's more impressive: his piano playing or his singing, especially considering he's Tweeted he hasn't ever had vocal lessons.

When I first saw his "Paparazzi" performance a few weeks ago, I'm pretty sure it had gathered about a million views. Now, it has nearly 24 million, and I'm only responsible for about seven of those views, I promise.

Like Bieber, Greyson can thank YouTube and social media for his break and a quickly growing fan base.

I was sent the video by a friend, which I in turn passed on to several more friends.

It's taken off, I think, because it's such an unexpected combination of a well-performed Gaga song by a pre-teen at a school talent show. And because, unlike many YouTube videos of people singing along to a pop song, Greyson actually does a good job.

It's been the spotlight video on iGoogle on and off for a couple of weeks, and various pop sites such as People.com have linked to it.

Ellen DeGeneres brought him on her show May 13 and Lady Gaga called in to chat. Then just last week, Ellen started a record label and signed Greyson. And she gave him a $10,000 check and new piano. Not too shabby.

It's pretty incredible how quickly all of this happened. The video was posted April 28, and in less than a month, the kid's got a record deal, largely thanks to word of mouth.

He may not be a household name (yet), but he's already known as that Justin Bieber-Lady Gaga kid.

Will Greyson be the next big pop star? Who knows. He clearly has guts. After all, I doubt many 12-year-old boys are all about singing along to Lady Gaga in front of the entire school.

He's written a couple of his own songs, which he has performed on "Ellen" and posted on YouTube. His voice isn't bad, but his piano playing is what remains impressive.

Mimicking Gaga's voice is likely just a novelty, and he's only 12, so who knows how long he can keep that up.

But, if his voice changes too much in the next couple of years, he'll at least have his piano playing.