Jena Irene Ascuitto

Jena Irene Asciutto

Irene performing in 2014
Background information
Birth name Jena Irene Asciutto
Born (1996-07-13) July 13, 1996
Farmington Hills, Michigan, United States
Genres Alternative rock, pop rock
Occupation(s) Singer-songwriter
Instruments Vocals, piano
Years active 2014-present
Labels Original 1265 Recordings
Website www.jenairene.com

Jena Irene Asciutto (born July 13, 1996) is an American singer from Farmington Hills, Michigan. She was the runner-up of the thirteenth season of American Idol. Ascuitto became the first female Wild Card contestant of the series to qualify into the finale, and became the second Wild Card contestant, after Clay Aiken in the second season, to make it into the finale. In April 2015 she signed a long-term recording deal with the independent Detroit label Original 1265 Recordings.[1] Ascuitto released her debut EP, Innocence, on April 22, 2016.

Early life

Jena Irene Asciutto was born in Farmington Hills, Michigan, on July 13, 1996 to George Asciutto and Julie (née Loiselle.)[2] She graduated from North Farmington High School on June 8, 2014.[3] She participated in North Farmington's annual "Coffee House" talent show, and from ages 12–16 was a member of a band called Infinity Hour, before they disbanded in February 2013, prior to her American Idol audition.[4]

Career

2014: American Idol

For her American Idol audition, Ascuitto sang "Rolling in the Deep" by Adele. During the audition process, production continually called her "Jena Irene," possibly due to a mistake she made when writing down her name, as "Irene" is not her surname, but rather her middle name. Although she initially made attempts to correct her name, she eventually decided to keep the name professionally.[5]

During the group round, she sang "Too Close" by Alex Clare, alongside Sikenya Thomson, Allie Odom, and Mufarid Zaidi. She made it into the third part of Hollywood week by singing an original song called "Unbreakable Me," which has since been released on iTunes. Ascuitto performed the song again during her hometown visit after making it to the top 3. She was announced as the runner-up on May 21, 2014.

Performances on American Idol

Episode Theme Song choice Original artist Order Result
Audition Auditioner's Choice "Rolling in the Deep" Adele N/A Advanced
Hollywood Round, Part 1 A Capella "Video Games" Lana Del Rey N/A Advanced
Hollywood Round, Part 2 Group Performance "Too Close"
with Sikenya Thompson, Allie Odom, and Munfarid Zaidi		 Alex Clare N/A Advanced
Hollywood Round, Part 3 Solo "Unbreakable Me" (original composition) Jena Irene N/A Advanced
Top 31 (10 Women) Personal Choice "Paint It, Black" The Rolling Stones 4 Wild Card
Wild Card Hollywood Solo "Unbreakable Me" (original composition) Jena Irene 2 Advanced
Top 13 This Is Me "The Scientist" Coldplay 8 Safe
Top 12 Home "Suddenly I See" KT Tunstall 1 Bottom 3
Top 11 Songs from the Cinema "Decode" Paramore 10 Safe
Top 10 Billboard Top 10 "Clarity" Zedd feat. Foxes 3 Safe
Top 9 I'm with the Band! "Bring Me to Life" Evanescence feat. Paul McCoy 9 Safe
Top 8 Back to the Start Duet "Just Give Me a Reason"
with Alex Preston		 Pink feat. Nate Ruess 3 Safe
Solo "Rolling in the Deep" Adele 9
Top 8 Songs from the 1980s Solo "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" Arrows 1 Safe
Duet "It's Only Love"
with Caleb Johnson		 Bryan Adams & Tina Turner 5
Top 7 Competitors' Choice Duet "Gimme Shelter"
with Caleb Johnson		 The Rolling Stones 6 Safe
Solo "Creep" Radiohead 10
Top 6 Rock 'n' Roll "Barracuda" Heart 1 Safe
Country "So Small" Carrie Underwood 10
Top 5 America's Requests Trio "Best Day of My Life"
with Alex Preston & Sam Woolf		 American Authors 3 Safe
Solo "My Body" Young the Giant 6
Solo "Valerie" Amy Winehouse 9
Top 4 Love Songs "Heartbreaker" Pat Benatar 4 Safe
"Bad Romance" Lady Gaga 7
"Can't Help Falling in Love" Elvis Presley 11
Top 3 Randy Jackson's Choice "Titanium" David Guetta feat. Sia 3 Safe
Judges' Choice "Heart Attack" Demi Lovato 6
Hometown's Choice "Creep" Radiohead 9
Finale Simon Fuller's Choice "Dog Days Are Over" Florence + the Machine 1 Runner-Up
Reprisal Song "Can't Help Falling in Love" Elvis Presley 3
Winner's Single "We Are One" Jena Irene 5

    2014-present: Innocence and Cold Fame

    Irene took part in the American Idols LIVE! Tour 2014 from June 24 through August 24, 2014. She began work on her debut album immediately after the show as well.[6]

    In April 2015, Ascuitto signed a record deal with Detroit-based label Original 1265 Records.[1] In October 2015, the music video for "Unbreakable" was released.[7] The single would later be on both debut EP, Innocence, which was released on April 22, 2016, and her upcoming album, Cold Fame, which will be released in late 2016.[8][9] The music video for the second single, the title track of Innocence, was released two days prior to the official release date of the EP. Following the release of Innocence, it began charting at #16 on the iTunes Pop Albums chart. On April 22, 2016, one of the songs off of the album, "You Gotta Help Me", was featured in the Billboard.com Editors' Picks.

    Discography

    Extended plays

    List of albums, with selected chart positions and certifications
    Title Album details Peak
    chart
    positions
    US
    Heat    		 iTunes Albums iTunes Pop Albums
    Innocence 18 49 16

    Singles

    Title Year Peak chart positions Album
    US
    "We Are One" 2014 — N/A
    "Unbreakable" 2016 — Innocence and Cold Fame
    "Innocence" 2016 TBA Innocence
    Releases from "American Idol"

    Music videos

    Title Year
    "Unbreakable" 2015
    "Innocence" 2016

    References

    1. 1 2 http://www.freep.com/story/money/business/columnists/tom-walsh/2015/04/18/jena-irene-recording/25930843/
    2. ↑ Sue White (February 22, 2014). "'American Idol' finalist Jena Irene Asciutto has strong Bay City ties". MLive.com.
    3. ↑ Shari (21 May 2014). "American Idol Jena Irene Sings ‘Ain’t It Fun’ with Paramour 5/21/14 – #Idolfinale". Have U Heard. Retrieved 24 May 2014.
    4. ↑ "Who Is Jena Irene Asciutto? American Idol 2014 Contestant Background Info". Retrieved 16 June 2014.
    5. ↑ Perlman, Jake. "'Idol' Exit Interview: Runner-up Jena Irene on her name change, why she won't perform at prom -- VIDEO". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 14 June 2014.
    6. ↑ http://www.ydtalk.com/idolchatteryd/jena-irene-looks-forward-to-a-debut-album/
    7. ↑ "Blog". Jena Irene. Retrieved 2015-11-03.
    8. ↑ "Jena Irene Asciutto (@JenaAsciutto1) | Twitter". twitter.com. Retrieved 2016-01-31.
    9. ↑ "See what 'American Idol' runner-up Jena Irene Asciutto is up to now". MLive.com. Retrieved 2016-02-02.
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