Ayla Brown

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Ayla Marie Brown
Background information
Birth name Ayla Marie Brown
Born July 28, 1988
Wrentham, Massachusetts
Origin United States
Genre(s) Pop
Years active 2004–present
Label(s) Double Deal Brand Records

Ayla Marie Brown (born July 28, 1988) is an NCAA basketball player and recording artist from Wrentham, Massachusetts

Contents

[edit] Biography

Ayla Brown finished her high school career as one of the top female basketball players in Massachusetts history, scoring 2358 career points. This made her the 6th place all-time leading scorer in Massachusetts basketball history- male or female. [1] In addition, she is a two time Gatorade Player of the Year; named as the top female basketball player in Massachusetts.[2] After Ayla finished her senior season as the captain of Noble and Greenough High School girls' basketball team she went on to earn a spot on season five of American Idol, where she placed 13th overall.[[1]] She appeared before more than 30 million viewers three times a week until leaving the show March 9.[3] Brown's father, Scott P. Brown, is a Massachusetts state senator, and her mother, Gail Huff, is a local television personality at WCVB-TV. Brown has a younger sister, Arianna, who is an accomplished equestrian rider, and has received numerous awards and noteriety from her performances in riding competitions. [4]

Ayla was scouted by the Boston College Eagles since the age of 15.[2].She made a commitment to them, and went on to BC on a full athletic scholarship. Currently in her freshman year, she plays the forward for the Boston College Eagles wearing jersey #1. Ayla's nickname given to her by her team-mates is "Downtown Ayla Brown" because of her ability to sink 3 pointers, and lengthy shots[5].

[edit] American Idol

Brown auditioned for American Idol in Boston. She was eliminated from the show on March 9, 2006.

For her audition song, she sang "Ain't No Mountain High Enough". Randy Jackson said she had a good voice, and that even though he was not blown away, it was all right. Paula Abdul said that she could sing, but "It was all power voice" and that she wanted more dynamics. Simon Cowell accused Brown of being robotic and coming out of a perfect school, and that there was "something empty about it". In the end, Jackson and Abdul (who made the final judgment) sent Brown through to the Hollywood rounds.

During the Hollywood rounds, Brown sang "Reflection" by Christina Aguilera .

The next round was the final judgment for the top 24. Brown wore a blue shirt with jeans with light makeup. After she took her seat, Abdul tried to hold back with the news that she had made it, but said that nothing was hard for Brown. So, she finally made the top 24.

[edit] Performances

February 22, 2006–"Reflection" by Christina Aguilera

Randy Jackson said he was "pleasantly surprised". Paula Abdul liked it, and Simon Cowell commented that the song showed the limits of her voice. However, he said it also showed emotion.[3]

March 1, 2006–"I Want You To Need Me" by Celine Dion

Abdul said that she could tell Brown wanted this. She said that she thought she had improved from last week, and was pleased that she came out with conviction. Jackson said that she picked a good song and that he "actually liked it". Cowell said it was good, and that he was impressed with her work ethic but also said that it was "still a bit mechanical". [4]

March 8, 2006–"Unwritten" by Natasha Bedingfield (Eliminated)

Jackson said it just didn't give the "wow" factor, and that it was not a good song choice for American Idol. Abdul gave Brown credit for handling a song on the charts. Cowell thought it was "actually pretty good" but wasn't great. Throughout the duration of the performance, she let saliva collect in her mouth, giving a wet, warbly sound at the end, which may or may not have played a factor in her elimination.[5]

[edit] Forward and Post American Idol

Since appearing on Idol, and recording her debut CD, Ayla has made hundreds of personal appearances, most covered by local or national media and drawing 500 to 2000+ fans. She appeared at the Kiss 108 Concert in Mansfield, MA in front of 20,000 people on May 20, performing four songs and introducing Natasha Bedingfield. Ayla sang the national anthem on July 4 with the Boston Pops in front of hundreds of thousands of people, with her performance including a multiple F-16 fly-over and coverage on CBS. Ayla appeared at Fenway Park on July 12 and she also performed 6 shows over three days at the Eastern States Exposition Fair ( The Big E) in W. Springfield, MA from September 15-17. Ayla was asked once again to perform with the Boston Pops at the Conte Forum in Boston, where they performed a full orchestrated version of her title track "Forward" in front of 15,000 fans. Ayla Brown is also featured in the November (2006) issue of American Idol Magazine.

Ayla's debut album, Forward, was released on October 17, 2006.The album was recorded in New York at Tonic Studios, Raw Sugar Studios in Pawling, NY. and Double Deal Studios, in Chappaqua, NY. The tracks were mixed at A-Pawling Studios by Peter Moshay. Ayla began recording the vocals for the album immediately after signing her contract, and in a little over 1 week, she was done. The reason for the hurried recording schedule was because Ayla had to meet NCAA compliance deadlines, and finish her CD before starting at Boston College. The CD has received significant airplay on internet radio stations such as radioio, and Idolwaves The reviews for Forward have been extremely positive, and have come from respectable sources.

[edit] Discography

TRACK LISTING:

Know You Better

If I Was A River

Sugah

I Quit

Forward

Breaking Away

Falling Into You

Thanks To You

Miles Away

Ten Cent Wing

Forward (Unplugged)


Produced By - Jim McGregor Mixed By - Peter Moshay A&R/ Executive Producer - Wayne Laakko

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ http://www.boston.com/sports/schools/hockey/articles/2005/12/31/brown_is_quick_to_join_2000_point_club_in_nobless_victory/
  2. ^ http://WWW.AylaBrown.com
  3. ^ http://americanidol.com
  4. ^ http://WWW.AylaBrown.com
  5. ^ http://WWW.AylaBrown.com

[edit] External links

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../a/y/l/Ayla_Brown_433a.html"