(NBC Photo by John Russell) Shawn Mayer has survived a judges' cut and six viewer response-based eliminations to reach one of the final five spots on the NBC series "Nashville Star."

Daily Reporter Staff

The fiery farm girl from rural O'Brien County, Iowa, has reached the final five in a nationally-televised country music competition.

Shawn Mayer, 21, drew the highest praise she's received so far from a panel of three celebrity judges on "Nashville Star," the NBC Monday night reality series.

Mayer lives in Madison, Tenn., but grew up in May City, an unincorporated town north of Hartley. The show's producers have played up her tom-boy background as a mechanic and firefighter. They've also touched on a rebellious part of her personality, which has led her to daring song choices and a switch of mentors mid-way through the season.

While the judges' favorable comments help, it's text-message votes and toll-free phone calls which decide the eliminations each week. Monday night, she was in the bottom two for the first time in the six-week span of the show.

Mayer performed the Carrie Underwood smash "Before He Cheats" in front of Grammy nominee John Rich of Big & Rich, platinum-selling artist Jewel and award-winning songwriter Jeffrey Steele. The series is hosted by country music performer and actor Billy Ray Cyrus.

"Shawn, you really seemed comfortable and that really shows," Jewel said in comments after the performance. "I really think that this show, for you, has been about you finding your comfort, your light, loving yourself."

"You sounded confident. You sang great and look kind of like Priscilla Presley," Jewel added.

Rich was her mentor through almost five episodes of the show's sixth season. She "fired" him in one of the show's dramatic moments a week earlier.

"I'm coming out of my seat right now because this is the performance I've been waiting to see out of you the entire season," he said. "You've never looked better, you just took complete command of this stage. You had attitude. You put caution to the wind. That's the Shawn Mayer that has a chance to win this show."

Steele, Mayer's current mentor, told the performer she took all the emotion, caught on backstage cameras, and brought it to the performance.

"You killed it," he said. "Way to go."

Joining Mayer in the bottom two were Laura & Sophie. The teen-aged duo from Willoughby, Ohio, was eliminated at the end of the hour-long program.

The final five acts will perform an original song in the July 21 episode.

The winner of "Nashville Star" will receive a recording contract with Warner Bros. Nashville and a chance to perform at the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing. The season finale is scheduled for Aug. 8. About 45,000 acts auditioned and 12 advanced to the televised finals.