Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Right before her Season 13 American Idol audition, Nica Nashae said she wanted to deliver something memorable.

Within a couple of notes of her performance of “Natural Woman.” she had Harry Connick Jr. and Keith Urban tapping along with her singing on the judges’ table.

Nica Nashae earned a golden ticket for American Idol Season 13 at the Atlanta auditions. (FOX Photo)

A few seconds later, she was Hollywood bound with unanimous approval from the judges.

Nica is 24, from Milledgeville, Ga., and a student at Kennesaw State University, where she’s in her final year, according to her Facebook page.

She’s also working with an entertainment business in Kennesaw and was working on an EP before Idol came along, according to the bio on her YouTube page.

That bio also tells us that Nica is following in her father’s footsteps. He was a gospel singer featured on BET a number of times, she writes.

She has appeared on that station’s “106 and Park” show.

In her Road the Hollywood video, Nica admits she was nervous when she entered the audition room. But she said the judges started talking about how high her shoes were, and that lightened the mood.

Nica says Fantasia is one of her big musical inspirations.

“Not because she won American Idol, but because of some of the things she overcame,” Nica explains. “She didn’t give up. And I feel like I can do the same thing given that we’re both from small towns, that we get out and chase our dreams and just go hard and strive (to reach them).”

Nica says she thinks her bubbly personality combined with her drive and work ethic will help set her apart on Idol.

If you’d like to follow Nica, here are links to her Facebook page and Twitter account (@NicaNashae).

I’ve embedded a couple of  videos below of her singing. You can hear more on her YouTube channel.

“I’d Rather Go Blind” (Etta James cover)

“Diamonds” (Rihanna cover)

“Take Me to the King” (Tamela Mann cover)