Melissa went up against fellow Texan Gabe Garcia and Iowa’s Shawn Mayer in the final round of the fan-voted show. As the new Nashville Star champion, Melissa wins a recording contract with Warner Bros. Nashville, a Toyota Tundra truck, which she says she’s giving to her husband, and a chance to perform at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China. “Everything is still kind of sinking in right now,” said an exhausted Melissa after the show. Melissa added that being a wife and mom may have proven beneficial to her success. “I think there are so many people out there like myself who have a dream,” she said. “I feel very privileged to be able to represent moms around the world and help them believe in themselves.”