She may have become a download millionaire in the U.S., but the world's biggest music market will be made to wait for the next Natasha Bedingfield album.

As recording for the follow-up to her 2.3m-selling debut Unwritten reaches the midway point, her label Phonogenic is plotting a release strategy which will see her new album appearing in the UK on September 25, but not until 2007 internationally.

For the U.S., where the title track of her first album is five-times platinum after reaching its one-millionth paid-for download last month, it follows a similar pattern to her debut, which came out in the UK in September 2004, but was only made available in the States the following August.  The tactic clearly worked, with only James Blunt this year overshadowing Bedingfield as the UK success story in the U.S. this year.

In delaying the second album's Stateside release, label co-founder Paul Lisberg says it remains relatively early days for Bedingfield in the U.S., where Epic is just starting to work third single, Single.  "Unwritten has only just peaked at radio there," says Lisberg.  "Our priority will be the UK."

Bedingfield will join X-Factor finalist Michelle Lawson as the two big quarter four priorities for Phonogenic, which was formed in 2003 by Lisberg and Tops Henderson, with songwriters Steve Kipner and Andrew Frampton.  "Domestically, 2005 was a year of development for us and quite focused on Natasha's record internationally, so it's going to be good to get moving on these releases," says Lisberg.

RCA was last week unveiling a selection of tracks from the new Bedingfield album to long-lead publications, including first single I Want to Have Your Babies, which will go to radio in early August and receive a full commercial release on September 4.  "You can really see Natasha's growth on this record," says Lisberg.  "She was always, potentially, a very special artist, but she's almost unrecognisable in the sense of how far she's come as both a performer and writer."

Bedingfield has collaborated on a number of tracks with the songwriting trio of Steve Kipner, Andrew Frampton, and Wayne Wilkins, who, together, wrote more than half of her debut.  Additional credits go to Greg Kurstin, musical director for Beck, Gwen Stefani, and co-writer on new songs for both Lily Allen and All Saints; Rich Harrison, the name behind Beyonce's Crazy In Love and Amerie's 1 Thing; David Arnold; and the songwriting duo of Danielle Brisebois and Wayne Rodrigues, who wrote the title track of her debut.

Source:  UK Musicweek