American Idol alum Lauren Alaina is back on stage and ready to release her new album after vocal cord surgery put her out of commission.

The new music, she told Taste of Country before the 2015 ACM Awards, is a totally different style from her previous album, Wildflower, which came out in 2011.

“It’s not really like my first record at all. Everything’s different. I have a new voice, too. It’s a brand new me!” Alaina says.

The vocal cord surgery did put her on hold for a while, but it wasn’t all bad.

“I can sing a lot higher and a lot stronger,” she explains. “I have a three-octave range now because of it. For me, that’s a big deal." That's a good thing, by the way — the average vocal range is 1.5 octaves.

Alaina is ready to dive back in head-first and engage her loyal fans, who she says have been very patient and encouraging throughout the whole process.

“They’ve been so supportive,” the singer gushes. "I have the best fans. I know everyone says that, but I really think I do, because they stuck around two and a half years for music. That’s a long time to wait for music."

The album does not yet have a release date, but Alaina says it is very close to being finished. She even wrote all of the songs on the record except one. The first single, "Barefoot and Buckwild," was released in 2013.

The country singer will 21 this November, but she says she doesn’t have any major plans to go wild. “I plan to have some great music out when I’m 21," Alaina says with a laugh.

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