NEW YORK, Feb. 24, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Syco/Columbia Records is proud to announce the release of Heaven, the first album from British sensation Rebecca Ferguson, on May 29, 2012. Heaven debuted at #3 on the UK album chart with the biggest first week album sales for a debut UK female artist in 2011 and is quickly approaching over 500,000 in sales. The first single from the album, "Nothing's Real But Love," hit the top 10 on the British charts in its first week of release and is currently in rotation at various formats in the US including Urban AC, AAA and Public Radio.

Rebecca debuted "Nothing's Real But Love" on the finale of this year's British "X Factor" show in late November and pre-orders for the album on Amazon.com saw a 702% jump following the show, nearly twice that of Rihanna, who sang a song from her new album on the same program. And she has collected a series of celebrity fans, including British music icon Adele. "She's been such a support and said such lovely things about me," Rebecca says of the singer.

Initial reviews for her releases have been glowing. "Her gorgeous debut single puts Rebecca Ferguson in the same league as Aretha Franklin," wrote the pop music critic for the Telegraph, who called "Heaven" "a gritty collection of soulful, self-penned songs about real emotional issues."  The Daily Mail wrote, "Heaven is an album that touches millions," and The Times said, "Ferguson's voice is the real deal, a delicious blend of husky gorgeousness and bona fide soul power."

For her first album, "I spilled my soul out. A lot of it comes from writing about relationships I've been in, so I think everyone can probably relate to the lyrics – we've all been there." A self-confessed perfectionist, Rebecca, who has always written her own material, wrote a song every day for months.

Joining her in the studio were industry heavyweights Eg White (Adele, James Morrison, Duffy), who co-write "Nothing's Real But Love"; Fraser T Smith (N-Dubz, Tinchy Stryder, Cee Lo Green) and Claude Kelly in New York (Britney, Whitney Houston, Jessie J).

Rebecca, who had a hardscrabble youth in a single-parent household with five siblings, felt it was her destiny to be a singer from a very young age. She attended a performing arts high school, but that came to an abrupt end when she got pregnant at 17, then again when she was 19.

"People would say to me, 'Well your life's ruined now!' For a while I started to believe it, but you don't have to get rid of your dreams just because you have kids," she says. "They've just pushed me to succeed, to want to do better for them. And for me."

Rebecca embarked on her first ever UK and Ireland tour on February 17 and will continue through March 17, 2012. She will be performing tracks from Heaven in intimate venues in 18 cities.

To view Rebecca Ferguson's EPK please click the link below

http://video.razorandtie.com/rebeccaFergusonEPK_V4_LINK.mov

SOURCE Syco/Columbia Records