Adele, teenage singer described as “the new Amy Winehouse” - beehive and lurid personal life presumably not included - has topped a BBC website poll predicting the 10 acts most likely to make it big in music this year.

Adele Adkins, 19, of South London, goes by her first name alone.

Adele was voted top of the Sound of 2008 poll by a panel of 150 critics, who deem her capable of emulating the success of last year’s winner, Mika, and Corinne Bailey Rae, the winner of the poll in 2006.

Mika’s album, Life in Cartoon Motion, sold about a million copies in Great Britain in 2007, making it the third biggest album of the year.

If Adele can survive the hype, her smoky soul-pop might just make her as famous as Amy Winehouse, with whom she is often compared.

The BBC poll is known for pinpointing the big names of tomorrow, such as Kaiser Chiefs, Keane and last year’s Mercury Prize winners, Klaxons.

A 19-year-old Londoner named Adele is dreaming big in ‘08.

The major labels will likely note with dismay that five of Sound of 2008’s top 10 acts are on independent labels, or are unsigned.

“That might not be so unusual if it was a list based on artistic merit, but the pundits polled were asked which bands they thought would be the most successful in the coming 12 months,” said NME deputy editor Krissi Murison, who believes the result reflects disenchantment with mainstream acts.

“So the fact that 50 percent of the acts chosen don’t have major label marketing budgets behind them is a pretty amazing result.”

The big four record companies - EMI, SonyBMG, Warner and Universal - won’t be shutting up shop just yet, though. Of the estimated 135 million albums sold in Britain last year, they released about 80 percent.