Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Back in American Idol’s heyday, you were pretty much guaranteed the winner and runner-up would have albums out by the holiday shopping season.

Flash forward to today, and there’s no guarantee the runner-up will release an album anytime soon (take Kree Harrison, who finished second in Season 12 as an example).

I bring this up because Jena Irene told MLive.com earlier this month that she plans to release music before the two-year anniversary of her second-place finish in Season 13.

In fact, it sounds like lots of Jena Irene music might be coming our way this year.

In an interview you can watch here, she told MLive that she has finished work on a full-length album that will be released sometime in 2016.

First, she plans to release a five-track EP called “Innocence” in April. That EP will include a single by the same name and a full-length, five-minute version of “Unbreakable.”

“”It took a while for me to understand the image and the kind of content that I wanted to put out,” Jena says during the interview. “And I wasn’t really thinking about American Idol or that audience or anything — just what makes me happy and what makes me inspired.”

Oh, and Jena has gone back to performing under her full name — Jena Irene Asciutto.

Meanwhile, to watch the official video for “Unbreakable,” head here.

You can follow Jena on her Facebook page. On Twitter, she is @JenaAsciutto1.