It's that time again - time to shine the Radio Free Blogcritics spotlight on a new artist. This time around the artist is Shannon Campbell, a self-taught singer/songwriter "of the folk persuasion" located in Greenville, South Carolina.

Shannon has been playing guitar for about nine or ten years now, and performing in bars, clubs, festivals and coffeeshops since about 1998. Although she has a distinct acoustic playing style, it's her vocals that stand out, conveying powerful emotion with every word she sings. Her combination of an unapologetic stage presence, between-song bantering that borders on comedy hour, and a personal, yet universal writing style captivates audiences each time she plays.

Shannon has been successful as a live musician; she's performed solo, was a co-founder of the duo Folk You Harder along with Kerstin Hanson, and she and Nathan Davis tore up North Carolina for about a year not too long ago. But it's the internet where she's truly been able to network, reaching new fans on a daily basis and garnering anywhere from 3,000 to 8,000 downloads a month of her original material. Her weblog, Pet Rock Star, and the support of the weblog community have been valuable in getting the word out about her music.

Now a selection of her songs are available on Radio Free Blogcritics. Simply visit Andromeda-powered Radio Free Blogcritics and click on the little green "play" button on the right to start listening right away. It's free and easy!

Don't take my word for it, though. She's been reviewed here at Blogcritics already. Kevin Marks highlighted a nice remix track that was the result of internet-enabled collaboration, then picked Shannon for his Critiquees votes and plugged her complete collection.

Eric Olsen described a recent appearance and was also struck by a tidbit from Shannon's weblog.

So get listening!