Jana Kramer
| Jana Kramer | |
|---|---|
 Kramer in 2012 | |
| Born |
Jana Rae Kramer December 2, 1983 Rochester Hills, Michigan, U.S. |
| Occupation | Singer, actress |
| Years active | 2002–present |
| Spouse(s) |
Michael Gambino (m. 2004; div. 2004) Johnathon Schaech (m. 2010; div. 2011) Mike Caussin (m. 2015) |
| Children | 1 |
| Website |
www |
Jana Rae Kramer (born December 2, 1983) is an American actress and country music singer. She is best known for her role as Alex Dupre on the television series One Tree Hill. Kramer began a country music career in 2012 with the single "Why Ya Wanna" from her self-titled debut album for Elektra Records.
Early life
Kramer was born in Rochester Hills, Michigan, United States, to Nora and Martin Kramer. She is of German Chilean, Croatian and French ancestry. Jana has one brother Steve who is a police officer. Jana attended Rochester Adams High School.[1] She speaks some German.[2]
Career
2002–11: acting career and record deal
In 2002, Kramer made her acting debut in the low-budget independent horror film Dead/Undead. The following year Kramer guest appeared on All My Children, which marked Kramer's television debut. Kramer has since continued to appear in a number of television shows such as CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice and CSI: NY. She has also had small supporting roles in films such as Click, Prom Night and Spring Breakdown.
In 2007, Kramer appeared in a recurring role on the NBC sports drama television series Friday Night Lights. She played the role of Noelle Davenport in the series' second season. In 2008 Kramer appeared in The CW teen drama series 90210, a reboot of the 1990s teen drama television series Beverly Hills 90210. Kramer played the role of high school student Portia Ranson and made her debut in the first season's second episode "The Jet Set". Her role went on for six episodes and Kramer made her final appearance in "The Party's Over", which aired May 5, 2009.
In 2009, Kramer appeared on the HBO dramedy television series Entourage. Kramer played the role of a sorority girl who seduces the character Turtle (Jerry Ferrara), and appeared in four episodes.
In June 2009, it was announced Kramer would star in the CW drama television series seventh season of One Tree Hill. Kramer played the role of Alex Dupre, an actress and tabloid darling who becomes the new face of Brooke Davis's fashion line, "Clothes Over Bros", and creates havoc for the residents of Tree Hill. Kramer made her debut in the season's first episode. Initially Kramer's appearance on the show was meant to be in a recurring form, but her role was upgraded to a series regular by the season's fourteenth episode, "Family Affair". In March 2012, Kramer announced she would not appear regularly in the show's ninth and final season in order to pursue her music career. Kramer made her final appearance in the second episode of the ninth season, "In the Room Where You Sleep", which aired on January 18, 2012.[3]
In February 2011, Kramer signed a recording contract with Elektra Records. That same month she premiered her promo track, "I Won't Give Up", which premiered in the One Tree Hill episode, "Holding Out for a Hero", and was released the following day exclusively on iTunes and Amazon. The song reached number 75 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. The following month Kramer began work on her debut album. Country music producer Scott Hendricks produced the majority of the record. In April 2011, Kramer released another promo track, titled "Whiskey", which she also performed on One Tree Hill. The song reached number 99 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on digital sales alone.[4]
2012–present: continued acting and Jana Kramer
In February 2012, Kramer was cast as the protagonist in the independent drama film, Heart of the Country, playing the role of a privileged young woman, Faith Carraday,[5] who is following her show-biz dreams but leaves it all and moves to rural North Carolina after her husband is jailed for Wall Street fraud. Kramer is also attached to a horror film named The Gatekeeper.[6]
On January 16, 2012, Kramer released her official debut single, "Why Ya Wanna". Kramer premiered the official music video, directed by Kristin Barlowe, on February 6, 2012. The song peaked at number 52 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and number 3 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. "Whiskey" is the album's second official single.
On June 1, 2012, Kramer made her first televised live performance on Fox & Friends to promote her debut album. She performed "Why Ya Wanna" in front of a crowd of fans in New York City. On June 5, 2012, Kramer released her self-titled debut album Jana Kramer. The record received positive reviews from critics with many praising Kramer's vocal performance.
On June 5, 2013, Nationwide Insurance released the first of a series of commercials in its "Join the Nation" campaign, featuring Kramer as a stealthy woman dressed in black leather who follows a team of burglars and replaces the items they steal with newer versions to promote Nationwide's "Brand New Belongings" initiative.[7] Nationwide had signed Kramer to sing the Nationwide jingle in August 2012.[8] A second commercial, released in April 2014, featured Kramer's character replacing items in a fire-blackened apartment to promote Nationwide's renters' insurance.[9] In November 2014, Jana reprised her Nationwide role, this time as a sexy Santa Claus-like figure replacing items during Christmas season. Nationwide's advertising partner McKinney is behind the spots.[10]
In July 2013, Kramer opened for Blake Shelton on his Ten Times Crazier Tour in Virginia Beach, VA.[11]
In August 2013, the independent film Approaching Midnight starring Kramer had its world premiere at the Emagine Royal Oak in Michigan.[12]
Personal life
Kramer's first marriage was to Michael Gambino in Las Vegas, NV in 2004. They divorced several months later.[13]
On December 22, 2009, Kramer became engaged to actor Johnathon Schaech. The couple met on the set of Prom Night. They were married on July 4, 2010 in Glen Arbor, Michigan. However, the marriage lasted a little over a month before the couple separated.[14] Their divorce was finalized in June 2011.[15]
It was announced in September 2012 that Kramer was dating country music singer Brantley Gilbert. They met at the 2012 CMT Music Awards in June. The couple got engaged on January 20, 2013, his twenty-eighth birthday.[16] They split in August 2013.[17]
In August 2014, Kramer began dating Washington Redskins tight end Mike Caussin whom she met on Twitter.[18] She spoke of her relationship with Caussin saying she was now in a healthy place and a healthy relationship. Kramer and Caussin became engaged in December 2014 on her 31st birthday[19] and got married on May 22, 2015.[20]
On August 10, 2015, the couple revealed they are expecting their first child.[21] Their daughter Jolie Rae Caussin was born on January 31, 2016, in Nashville.[22]
Filmography
| Year | Title[23] | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2002 | Dead/Undead | Alice St. James | |
| 2003 | All My Children | Unknown | TV series (unknown episodes); uncredited |
| 2003 | The Passage | Bartender at Alvin's | |
| 2003 | Blood Games | Mistress Tiamat | Credited as Jana Rae |
| 2005 | Blue Demon | Carrie | |
| 2005 | Return of the Living Dead: Necropolis | Katie Williams | Kramer could not finish filming |
| 2006 | Click | Julie | |
| 2006 | CSI: Crime Scene Investigation | Unknown | TV series (1 episode: "Post Mortem"); uncredited |
| 2006 | CSI: NY | Paige Rowand | TV series (1 episode: "Sweet 16") |
| 2007 | Boxboarders! | Victoria | |
| 2007 | Friday Night Lights | Noelle Davenport | TV series (6 episodes) |
| 2008 | Prom Night | April | |
| 2008 | Approaching Midnight | Aspen | |
| 2008 | Can You Duet | Herself | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 2008 | Bar Starz | Ryann | |
| 2008 | Grey's Anatomy | Lola | TV series (2 episodes) |
| 2008 | The Poker Club | Trudy Todaro | |
| 2008–09 | 90210 | Portia Ranson | TV series (6 episodes) |
| 2009 | Private Practice | Lyla | TV series (1 episode: "What Women Want") |
| 2009 | Laid to Rest | Jamie | |
| 2009 | Spring Breakdown | Seven #2 | |
| 2009 | Entourage | Brooke Manning | TV series (4 episodes) |
| 2009–12 | One Tree Hill | Alex Dupre (Alice Whitehead) | TV series (38 episodes) |
| 2012 | Heart of the Country | Faith Carraday | |
| 2013 | Dance Moms | Herself | TV series (1 episode: "Welcome Back... Now Don't Get Too Comfy") |
Discography
- Studio albums
- Jana Kramer (2012)
- Thirty One (2015)
Awards and nominations
| Year | Association | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | American Country Awards | Artist of the Year: New Artist | Nominated |
| Single of the Year: New Artist- "Why You Wanna" | Nominated | ||
| Music Video of the Year: New Artist- "Why You Wanna" | Nominated | ||
| 2013 | ACM Awards | Top New Female Artist | Won |
| Top New Artist | Nominated | ||
| CMT Music Awards | Female Video of the Year : "Why Ya Wanna" | Nominated | |
| Breakthrough Video of the Year : "Why Ya Wanna" | Nominated | ||
| 2016 | ACM Awards | Female Vocalist of the Year | Nominated |
| American Country Countdown Awards | Breakthrough Female of the Year | Pending | |
| Female Vocalist of the Year | Pending |
References
- ↑ Crawfis, Jesse (February 28, 2012). "Actress, Country Music Star Returns To Her Hometown With Video". The Oakland Press. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
- ↑ "New Artist Spotlight: Jana Kramer". Great American County. Retrieved June 4, 2012.
- ↑ Dauphin, Chuck (March 21, 2012). "Spotlight: Jana Kramer Gave Up 'One Tree Hill' for Music Dreams". Billboard. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Jana Kramer Signs Record Deal, Will Debut Single On "One Tree Hill"". MTV. February 4, 2011. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Heart of the Country Website".
- ↑ "Jana Kramer of 'One Tree Hill' to play lead role in 'Heart of the Country' | The WAE". Wae.blogs.starnewsonline.com. February 22, 2012. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Jana Kramer Stars in New Nationwide Ad". Nationwide Blog. June 5, 2013. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ↑ "-your-side"-jingle "Jana Kramer Signed to Sing Nationwide's 'On Your Side' Jingle". JanaKramer.com. August 10, 2012. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ↑ "Watch Jana Kramer's Sexy-as-Usual New Nationwide TV Spot". ArtistDirect.com. April 10, 2014. Retrieved May 17, 2014.
- ↑ "Work for Nationwide". McKinney.com. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
- ↑ "Blake Shelton Tour Dates 2013 Will Be ‘Ten Times Crazier’". Theboot.com. January 17, 2013. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Independent Michigan film 'Approaching Midnight' premieres in Royal Oak". The Oakland Press. September 9, 2013. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
- ↑ "Jana Kramer Is Pregnant! Singer Expecting First Child With Husband Michael Caussin". E!. August 17, 2015. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
- ↑ Finn, Natalie (August 9, 2010). "One Tree Hill Actress's Marriage Over After a Month". E! Online. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
- ↑ "One Tree Hill's Jana Rae Kramer Finalizes Divorce". Us Weekly. June 8, 2011. Retrieved September 8, 2013.
- ↑ Dukes, Billy (September 21, 2012). "Brantley Gilbert Confirms That He and Jana Kramer Are Dating". Taste of Country. Retrieved September 23, 2012.
- ↑ Takeda, Allison (August 15, 2013). "Jana Kramer Split: Singer, Fiance Brantley Gilbert Call Off Engagement". Us Weekly. Retrieved December 18, 2013.
- ↑ "Jana Kramer: Wedding Date and Tour Dates". CMT News. April 9, 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ↑ Shelburn, Craig (December 3, 2014). "Jana Kramer Engaged to Michael Caussin". CMT News. Retrieved 29 December 2014.
- ↑ Webber, Stephanie (2015-05-22). "Jana Kramer Marries Michael Caussin: "We Feel Extremely Blessed" – Us Weekly". Usmagazine.com. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
- ↑ 1. "Jana Kramer Pregnant; Expecting First Child with Michael Caussin – Moms & Babies – Celebrity Babies and Kids - Moms & Babies - People.com". Time, Inc. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
- ↑ Murray, Rheana (February 1, 2016). "Singer Jana Kramer shares first photo of adorable baby girl Jolie Rae". today.com. NBC.
- ↑ "Jana Kramer". IMDb.com. Retrieved 2015-08-10.
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