Get to Know Country Cutie Clare Dunn: Star Shares Her Musical Inspirations, Celeb Crush and More!

Songstress opens up at the annual Stagecoach festival

Before you retire your cowboy boots and hang up your cowboy hat until next year's Stagecoach Music Festival, we want to introduce you to Clare Dunn. This up-and-coming country bombshell took the Mane Stage Saturday afternoon at Southern California's largest country music festival and we were blown away! This was her first time performing at the festival and she was beyond excited. "It's monstrous!" Clare told us at the Indio, Calif.-fest. "When I got the call to do this, I thought, 'OK, I will be on some small side stage,' but I am on the Mane Stage! I flipped out!"  

Growing up in the small town of Two Buttes, Colo., Clare says, "Music was the escape." Her musical influences include Keith Urban, The Rolling Stones, Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill, George Strait and most importantly, Bob Seger. Just last month, Clare opened for Bob Seger in Salt Lake City. "When I got to go on tour with Bob Seger, I was like "Oh my God, that's my hero!' That was a huge moment for me," she dished.

When asked about her performance on Saturday, she laughed and said, "This is a moment that you feel like you've made it—when you're not worried about getting kicked out." Clare has also played shows with Keith Urban, Florida Georgia Line, Dierks Bentley and Luke Bryan. Keith Urban has been her favorite to tour with and she "would love to actually work with someday."

 As far as dating goes, Clare is single and loving it! "Dating is really hard for me," she admits, "but for now I'm married to my guitar. It's the love of my life right now." Although, if her celebrity crush, John Mayer, happened to walk through the door, her guitar may have some competition!

We saw Clare's stunning outfit at the 50th Academy of Country Music Awards earlier this month, and although she didn't get to walk the red carpet, we can expect to see her there next year! "This is all I've ever dreamed of and for a kid who didn't have a shot, being able to pursue music, coming from the place I'm from—this is for all of us." She added, "My heart's desire is that [the fans] would just for a moment of their day, their night, of their weekend, be able to just come and let loose and have a great time." We definitely think you are on the right track, girl!

Clare is currently on a radio tour, and you can check out all her tour dates on her site.