Must Be The Music stars Pepper and Piano set for top five

The UK's first talent show to make its music available for download immediately has propelled a little-known act called Pepper & Piano into the charts.

Singer Katie and pianist Emma, have seen their single You Took My Heart enter the download charts, with a top five position looking likely this weekend.

They've also won themselves some interesting celebrity followers, including Lily Allen.

She recently wrote on her Twitter account: "Pepper and Piano seem to be no7 in itunes chart today. V.good news, let's get it to no1."

Their performance on Sunday's Must be the Music was only their second gig in front of an audience and they describe it as "genuinely terrifying".

Emma told Newsbeat they are finding their chart success pretty surprising: "We're still trying to get our head round it at the moment, we really are. It's madness.

Final battle

"It's just really overwhelming and amazing. So many people have just loved the song and got behind us."

However, Katie says that getting into the chart wasn't a priority: "We kind of forgot about that aspect because we were so focused on, 'We really want to be in the final, we really want to perform at Wembley'.

Tinchy Stryder says the TV-to-download model "doesn't feel right"

"We just sort of thought, 'Oh to be in the top 100 in the iTunes chart, that would be incredible'. But five!"

The pair are up against Eminem and Rihanna this week and another reality star, X Factor's Olly Murs, who likes what they're doing.

He said: "With Pepper & Piano it's an original song, so that's different to the X Factor because on the X Factor you're doing songs that are cover versions of other people's tracks.

"I'm really, really impressed with that. It's the future isn't it, I suppose, it's the way technology is now."

Other artists, like Professor Green and Tinchy Stryder, have previously been outspoken in their criticism of TV shows dominating the charts.

'Doesn't feel right'

Tinchy said: "There are a lot of artists who work hard and go into the studio and put so much effort in.

"Overall, it doesn't feel right. It feels better when you put your heart into it instead of going on a TV show."

Katie responds: "It's not like we've come from a show that's massively renowned or already established itself. I can understand what he's saying but I think it's quite incredible that with no record label, no management, no plugger, we've got to the top 10."

Must Be The Music, which airs on Sky1 HD, sees a host of artists compete in a talent show judged by Dizzee Rascal, Jamie Cullum and Sharleen Spiteri.

Pepper & Piano say they've been overwhelmed by their chart success

As soon as the acts reached the live semi-final stage all 15 artists saw their music became available for download.

It's a formula that has served hit US TV show Glee well, with five singles featured in the programme making it into the UK chart less than a week after the first episode aired in January.

The series went on to claim 42 tracks in the top 75 of the UK singles chart and 17 in the top 40.

So when Must Be The Music was announced it's makers had high hopes for a similar kind of success.

All profits from the Pepper & Piano single go directly back to them.

Katie said: "Obviously iTunes and Sky Music take their bit as distributors but we make all the profit, we take all the money from it which is mad, not only are we in the top five but we're making money from being there."

The pair are supposed to be returning to music college soon but the final clashes with the new term so they say they may end up putting it off.

Must Be The Music concludes with six finalists at a live final at Wembley Arena on 19 September.