It’s not just a game for 19-year-old Alyssa Reid. The singer has enjoyed a successful year promoting her debut album “The Game,” leading to her very first Juno nomination and her first time performing at the awards show.

The funny thing about Reid’s first hit “Alone Again” is that the track almost wasn’t going to be released.

“Honest to God, I was actually going to go with ‘The Game’ as my first single,” Reid says.  “We were not going to release ‘Alone Again’ at all.  And last minute we just kinda threw it out there to see what would happen and it just sort of blew up.”

“Some people didn’t think it was strong. Some people didn’t think it was a good idea, and two of us were like ‘it’s a hit – we need to release it.’ We kinda just, to spite everyone, released it and it worked,” she says.

The last minute decision paid off; the success of the release helped pave the way for a co-headlining tour with Canadian band Neverest and the successful launch of her album “The Game” in 2011. Now Reid is enjoying her first Juno nomination for Best New Artist of the Year,.

“I was really nervous. Luckily I was the very first nominee announced (at the Juno Awards press conference), so I didn’t have to wait that long,” she says.  “It was amazing. I texted my best friend and she was freaking out.”

Now that the news has settled in, Reid is busy gearing up for her trip to Ottawa for the big awards show on April 1.  She’s already tweeted she bought her outfits, but she’s keeping mum on the details.  But she did say fans shouldn’t expect anything “too girly”.

“Honestly, I’m like the worst girl ever. I hate pink, purple, frills and bows and ruffles and stuff.  I usually go for the more edgy stuff.  I like sparkles. That’s about the only girly thing about me,” she says.

Reid will, however, be changing her wardrobe mid-show.

“I have two different outfits, one for the show itself and then I have a different outfit to perform in. And the blue outfit I’m performing in is definitely very, very, very flashy.  I’m very excited for that one.”

Reid often updates her fans online using Twitter.  She’s even taken to asking their advice from time to time.  After getting rid of her first car, she was ready to purchase a brand new one, and posed the question to fans: should I get a Ford Fiesta or a Fiat?

“I actually bought the Fiat.  They (the fans) actually decided what car I got.  I was very torn between the two,” she says.  “And a lot of people didn’t know what the Fiat was, so the minute I posted the picture people were like, ‘Oh my gosh, that’s so cute - get that one’.  So, I got it.”

Reid’s auto research process actually sparked a light-hearted Twitter battle between Ford and Fiat, as both companies wanted her behind the wheel of their products.

“The Ford and the Fiat companies all got included on the tweeting,” she explains.  “Ford was tweeting me saying, ’It’s not even a competition, you have to get the Fiesta’ and Fiat was rebutting, ‘What are you talking about? The Fiat is so stylish.’ So I was really torn because even the car companies were trying to change my mind.”

Now Reid has her new Fiat, two outfits for the show, and a whole lot to look forward to at the Juno Awards. 

“Even if I wasn’t nominated and I got to perform still, I think that would be very ‘oh my God’ so the fact that I’m nominated and I get to perform is amazing. I’ve never performed in front of so many people, so I’m a little bit nervous. Hopefully everything goes perfectly.”