Colbie and Corey cruise to The NorVa

Two young musicians are dropping anchor this weekend at The NorVa.

Both have been to the Norfolk club in the past year and are touring to keep building momentum in their careers.

Colbie Caillat's claim to fame is her album "Coco," with the hits "Bubbly" and "Realize." She released a deluxe edition of the album this month with seven new cuts.

Corey Smith is still promoting his latest CD, "Hard-Headed Fool," and is issuing a live CD.

To test their loyal fans, and introduce the singers to potential new ones, we offer this get-acquainted quiz. The answers are "Colbie," "Corey," "neither" or "both."

1. Is No. 1 on country music starlet Taylor Swift's "cool person list."

2. Has used the Internet to build interest in his or her music.

3. Shares a name with a defensive end for the Detroit Lions.

4. Recently took lessons to improve stage presence.

5. Has a hit song that has become an anthem for high school students.

The answers

1. Colbie

Caillat and Taylor Swift worked together on the single "Breathe," which is on Swift's sophomore album, "Fearless." That's now the No. 1

country album and No. 2 overall on the Billboard chart. Caillat recently was featured on Country Music Television's "Insider" program.

2. Both

Caillat ignited a brushfire when she posted "Bubbly," along with other songs, on her MySpace page. Her father, Ken, co-produced Fleetwood Mac's "Rumours" and "Tusk," so she had grown up in Southern California around music. As millions of MySpace hits piled up in 2007, she matured from someone dabbling with songwriting to a much sought-after performer who eventually signed with Universal Republic and became a platinum-selling artist.

Smith's big hit "I'm Not Gonna Cry" gained traction on the Internet, and his album titles have generated more than 200,000 downloads. His latest achievement includes a position as No. 1 unsigned country artist on MySpace.

3. Corey

The other Corey Smith is a 6-foot-2, 250-pounder from Richmond who went to North Carolina State. We don't know of anyone else in the world named Colbie Caillat. (By the way, it rhymes with ballet.)

4. Colbie

She recently told the Nashville Tennessean: "At the beginning, I used to just stand there straight, holding the microphone and not really opening my eyes or walking around. I was just so nervous. I would wear simple tank tops and jeans.

"Now I realize I have to evolve a little bit onstage, so I had a choreographer come out and get me to move around, and I got new clothes to dress it up a little more.... "

"It gave me more confidence, what I was wearing and moving around and what the crowd was reacting to. It motivates you to stay in that and keep getting better as you go."

5. Corey

Smith was a high school teacher after graduating from the University of Georgia in 2001. He wrote "I'm Not Gonna Cry" as a gift for graduates of Dawson County High School in Dawsonville, Ga., and it hit a chord with high school students across the country. The song, which is on his "Undertones" album, has been chosen by hundreds of schools as their graduation anthem, many even reciting the lyrics as they turned their tassels to signify the milestone.

Dan Duke, (757) 446-2546, dan.duke@pilotonline.com