Before They Were Famous: Scotty McCreery

Before and during his time on 'American Idol,' Scotty McCreery was a cashier at Lowe's Foods, a grocery store in Garner, N.C. His boss told Taste of Country that the then-17-year-old was a fine employee. “His work ethic was great,” Terry Mascaro said in March 2011. “He was always a little bit early for his shift and customers loved him. He had a great attitude on the front end.”

McCreery kept the job as episodes began airing in January 2011, meaning he was becoming famous during his final weeks at the checkout line. "It was hard to get any customers to go to any other line in the store,” Mascaro added at the time. Throughout the season, the grocery chain was a major supporter of McCreery, even providing cakes for the weekly public viewing parties.