Some singer/songwriters' inspiration is love, or heartache, or politics. Maddie Georgi's is autism.

The 15-year-old Hampton native's first original song was "Take My Hand." It was inspired by her autistic brother, Jake, who's 13.

"He gets really embarrassed about it and shy. He doesn't like to have a lot of focus on him. So we say it was written about both of my brothers," said Maddie, whose second brother, Luke, is 12.

She donated the song to the Autism Center of Pittsburgh, where it can be downloaded for $2. According to the center's director, Cindy Waeltermann, the song has brought in a little more than $4,000. She'll perform it tomorrow night during Rock for Autism.

The concert benefits the Autism Center of Pittsburgh, a nonprofit organization that offers services to families caring for an autistic child. The show at the Hard Rock Cafe will include performances by Enuff Z'Nuff and Euphonic Brew, two local bands.

Besides raising $4,000, "Take My Hand" also helped Maddie win the Kean Idol competition. The local competition, fashioned after "American Idol," is a fund-raiser for St. Barnabas Health System. Maddie has competed in it since it began three years ago. The first year, the competition lasted only one round on one night. This year, it was six rounds, two semifinals and one championship night. Maddie advanced by singing "Hopelessly Devoted to You" from "Grease" and going her "musical theater route." For the championship she sang "Take My Hand."

Maddie's "musical theater route" began early. When she was 7, she was enrolled in Act One Theatre School. Singing Rodgers & Hammerstein songs soon led to an interest in singing pop music.

"I didn't really start doing a lot around the area until this past year," Maddie said. "I was just performing in musicals."

Following in the footsteps of Christina Aguilera, who also grew up in the North Hills area, Maddie sang the national anthem at the Pirates game yesterday. After the Hard Rock concert, she will be the opening act for Billy Price June 21 at the Syria Shrine Center.

When she's not onstage belting out tunes, she's hosting the Steelers "Kidzone" show, which airs at 10 a.m. Sunday mornings on WPCW, the local CW station. For the past two seasons she has interviewed players in front of a live audience of kids. The job just fell into her lap when she happened to go to Dick's Sporting Goods the day auditions were being held.

"They were looking for just normal, everyday kids," she said.

Sure, as long as most normal, everyday kids are working on their first demo album. Maddie has some help, too -- she's recording at the Squirrel Hill studio Broadcast Lane with Chris "Lurch" Rudyk, a producer who has worked with Feist, Rufus Wainwright and other artists.

"It's probably going to be four or five songs. I didn't think I'd have a lot of originals, but lately I've been cranking out the tunes, so that's exciting," said Maddie, who first began learning the guitar nine months ago, so she could become "more self sufficient."

Learning the guitar is going "really well." Seems like everything else for Maddie Georgi is going the same way.

If you go: Rock for Autism begins at 9 p.m. tomorrow at Hard Rock Cafe, Station Square. Doors open at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 in advance, $15 at the door. All proceeds benefit local kids with autism.