Ellen DeGeneres has ripped a page from Simon Cowell’s playbook to start her own record label.

DeGeneres, who’s been knocked for not having the musical chops to be a judge on “American Idol,” announced yesterday that her new label will be called eleveneleven.

And she’s already signed her first artist — 12-year-old Greyson Chance, the YouTube sensation du jour for his rendition of Lady Gaga’s “Paparazzi.”

“Greyson . . . inspired me to start a record label . . . He is my first artist and we’re making a record together,” DeGeneres said yesterday on “Ellen” after Chance performed on the show.

The new deal could allow DeGeneres to sign future contestants who appear on “Idol” — much like Cowell, who inked the “Idol” winners to recording deals with his Syco label as part of his deal with show producer 19 Entertainment.

DeGeneres will run eleveneleven as a partnership with Telepictures, which produces “Ellen” and is a division of Warner Bros.

Insiders say that “a partnership with a major label” is still in the works — and that artists signed to eleveneleven will “absolutely” appear on “Ellen,” which has a reputation for promoting musicians.