Idol Chatter & Voice Views

Jessica Meuse, the fourth-place finisher from Season 13 of American Idol, will release a debut album this summer.

And Jessica also released an excellent first single from the album, a catchy upbeat song called “Love Her Better.”

“People have been waiting for an album from me ever since I got off the show,” says Jessica, now 27. “They’re like, ‘Jess, when are you going to have an album?

“I was going to do an EP. And I had already paid for some of it. Then, all of a sudden, I had this management deal, the stars lined up perfectly and we decided, ‘Let’s pull the trigger. Let’s do it.”

The album will be called “Halfhearted,” but there’s certainly nothing half-hearted about the fact that the album will be 15 songs strong.

And I’m anticipating strong based on the music Jessica has already released. Remember “Blue-Eyed Lies,” the excellent self-penned original she performed on Idol?

According to a press release announcing the album, three more songs will be released one at a time — “High” on June 15, “California Dream” on June 29 and “Thank God It Didn’t Work” on July 13.

The album is due out Aug. 3.

And this should intrigue Idol fans. It will include a track called “Without You” that features Season 4 Idol runner-up Bo Bice.

Here’s the link to pre-order on iTunes.

And here’s “Love Her Better.”