Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Ta-Tynisa Wilson:   A vocal performance major at Columbia College, Ta-Tynisa has landed the role of Lorrell Robinson in the production Dream Girls Chicago, which opens this weekend.  The 21-year-old recently told Action Magazine that this will mark her first acting role, but that she’d like to do more acting in the future.  You also can check out two recent covers — “Grenade” and “Baby” — that she posted on soundcloud.com and more Ta-Tynisa music on her YouTube channel.

Julie Zorrilla:   You might remember the 21-year-old from L.A. as the gal whose family fled an idyllic mountain-top home in Colombia when guerrilla warfare entered the region.  She’s still singing, classifying her sound as organic/pop/soul, and posted a cover of Lady Gaga’s “You and Me” in early February.   And, in November, she was featured on the cover of Fashion 5.o Magazine for her “funky style and unique jewelry designs.”   A fan on Facebook recently expressed surprise that she hadn’t tried out for Idol again.  Julie responded that she had a blast on Idol and learned a lot, but isn’t sure it’s the best route to show who she is as an artist, partly because she wasn’t allowed to play instruments.   You can hear lots of Julie on her YouTube channel.

Kendra Chantelle:  We’re still waiting for a first CD from most of the Season 10 finalists, but Kendra released a 12-track album, “Unthinkable,” in November on Olde Soul Records.   It’s available on iTunes; check out the tune “I Am Somebody,” which I’ve embedded below.   Kendra also released a holiday duet of “O, Holy Night”  with Brennin — yes, the same Brennin who was a contestant on The X Factor — and performs regularly in Nashville.  In fact, she has a Wednesday night gig at a place called That’s Cool in a show that also features Brennin.  Here’s a link to Kendra’s website.

Brett Loewenstern:  An early favorite in Season 10, this self-described “red apple in a basket of green apples” has released two singles since Idol, “Look at Me Now” in December and “Trying to Wait” last month.  He performed the latter on the CW Network, a free download is available from his website, and I’ve embedded a video of the song below so you don’t have to leave to listen.  And he’s got a couple of high-profile gigs coming up — at a Concert to Prevent Bullying in New York on March 5 and at a Nat King Cole Generation Hope event in West Palm Beach, Fla., on March 8 to support local music programs.  “I’m really happy for the 24 this year .. everyone on there deserves that experience,” he writes on Facebook.  “It only comes once in a lifetime.”

Clint “Jun” Gamboa:  We’re coming up on a big weekend for the guy with the fashionable glasses who likes to be referred to as JunBug.  Clint has been a featured vocalists on songs released by a couple of other artists since Idol, but Friday night he’ll be one of the stars of the show at the single release/charity event at the Rolling Stone Lounge in Hollywood.  He and Stacey Cacal are releasing a single called “Love Is At War”;  Stacey is a 16-year-old singing prodigy, according to a press release promoting the event.  The show will support Pusong Pinoy, a group that provides food, clothing and books to needy children in the Philippines.

Tim Halperin:  You could say Tim’s been a little busy since Idol.  Back in September, he released a creative video for a tune called “The Last Song,” which was anything but.  The same day he released an acoustic six-track cover EP that includes “Rolling in the Deep,” plus a 13-track album of Tim Halperin originals called “Rise and Fall.”  I’ve embedded my favorite track from the album — “I Gotta Know” — below.  This weekend, Tim will be performing in Fort Worth, Texas, at a Susan G. Komen for the Cure conference, then it’s off on a Royal Caribbean cruise, where he’ll be a featured performer. Oh, and he’s been performing music lately with Hayley Orrantia.  Name doesn’t ring a bell?  Try Lakoda Rayne.  Yep, she’s the non-blonde in the group formed on The X Factor. You can follow Tim’s adventures on his blog and his website.

Brett Loewenstern, “Trying To Wait”

Kendra Chantelle — “I Am Somebody”

Tim Halperin — “I Gotta Know”

Clint Gamboa, Stacey Cacal, “Love Is At War”
Song begins at 5:30 mark, preceded by interview