Why America has fallen in love with Bindi Irwin

Bindi Irwin's status as Australia's daughter was cemented from birth. She was beloved Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin's little girl, and after his 2006 death, the country took her under its collective wing.

Now that she's 17, an age when many current superstars, including Rihanna and Taylor Swift, started their ascent, the timing is perfect for Bindi to graduate to Aussie superstardom.

But how did she become America's next big thing? Almost from the moment she was announced as a contender on the US Dancing with the Stars, she's been the season's It Girl, with her well-received performances clinching her frontrunner status.

She's landed on the cover of new Us Weekly, and suddenly, all of America is talking about Bindi. Part of it is her Aussie appeal, always a huge Yankee draw. Her DWTS partner Derek Hough summed it up perfectly this week. Watch him gush in the video above.

Watch her 'Crocodile Rock'-ing tribute to her dad in her DWTS debut below.