Jennette McCurdy entered the entertainment industry pursuing dual paths as a singer and an actor. Born Jennette Michelle Faye McCurdy on June 26, 1992, in Garden Grove, CA, she launched her acting work at age eight after drawing inspiration from Harrison Ford, with whom she later shared the screen in Hollywood Homicide. Her first on-camera appearance came in 2000 on MAD TV, after which she became a regular Nickelodeon presence portraying Sam Puckett on iCarly while accumulating additional television credits from 2001 onward on series such as CSI, Law & Order, Will & Grace, and Malcolm in the Middle. The year 2005 brought two Young Artist Award nominations in the category of Best Performance in a Television Series—Guest Starring Young Actress, one for her role in Strong Medicine and another for portraying Dory Sorenson in the television film The Last Day of Summer. McCurdy issued her debut album during summer 2009, at which time the lead single “So Close” became available as a digital release.
