Jewel - who has sold over 27 million albums worldwide - advised Jessica, 28, to "be true" to herself when her debut country record hits stores in September.

She said: "I really like Jessica. She's always been such a sweet, sweet person. If I were going to give her any advice, I would say work hard and be authentic. Be true to who you are.

DailyMail

"The thing about country music is its fans have an excellent authenticity meter. They can spot bulls**t a mile away. Anyone who comes to country music just to dabble in it, or who doesn't know it or respect it as a genre and respect its history and tradition, is not going to make it."

Jessica recently revealed the record is not just a passing phase, and she wants to sing country music for "the rest" of her life.

She said: "I'm planning on making country music for the rest of my life, and I don't want to go back to that other world.

"I take a lot of pride in my talent and in the record I was able to put together. I'm not giving up."

It was recently revealed Jessica's as-yet-untitled LP will be released in the US on September 9.

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