| Ace Young | |
|---|---|
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Brett Asa Young |
| Also known as | Ace Young |
| Born | November 15, 1980 Denver, Colorado |
| Origin | Los Angeles, California, United States |
| Genres | Pop, rhythm and blues, blue-eyed soul, rock |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 2000—present |
| Associated acts | Daughtry, Little Memphis Blues Orchestra, Brian McKnight, New Edition |
| Website | AceMusic.com |
Brett Asa "Ace" Young (born November 15, 1980 in Denver, Colorado) is an American singer, songwriter and actor. He came to national recognition upon appearing on the fifth season of the reality television talent show, American Idol, although he was eliminated from the competition on April 19, 2006, finishing in seventh place.
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Young, who is of German and Irish descent,[1] was raised in Denver, Colorado,.[2] He is the fifth and last son of Jay Young, a retired minor-league baseball player, and Kay Whitney, a cosmetologist and member of the LDS Church (although Young himself is not a member of the Mormon religion, but rather a non-denominational Christian).[3] Young has four older brothers: Josh, Duff, Marc, and Ryan. He was named after his maternal great-grandfather, Asa, and after baseball player George Brett; he has been called Ace by his family since his childhood and did not know his legal name until he was six years old.[4]
Young, who has been singing since the age of nine, attended voice lessons and performed at local shopping malls and recreation centers during his youth.[5] He performed at various venues in Colorado and other western states, most notably at the Pepsi Center in Denver. Young graduated from Fairview High School, his local high school, in 1999, having participated in athletics, choir, and International Baccalaureate classes during his school years.[6]
After his high school graduation, Young opened for Brian McKnight and New Edition, and sang the national anthem at Denver Nuggets games. His first published song, "Reason I Live" was featured in the 2000 film The Little Vampire.[7]
In 2003, Young moved to Los Angeles, California, where he initially worked in sales and home remodeling. During this time, he guest-starred in an episode of Half & Half, playing a character named Ace Blackwell.[8]
Young auditioned for American Idol in Denver, wearing a tuque beanie and singing a rendition of Westlife's "Swear It Again" and was unanimously passed on to the next round. American Idol judges Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson approved his entry, with Jackson noting that Young was one of the best singers he had seen audition. Simon Cowell disagreed with Abdul and Jackson but also approved Young, with a small "yes". He was introduced as Brett Young, with the name 'Ace' marked in quotations. Later, he told them he preferred to be called Ace, and the quotes were removed from his credits.
On April 4, the fourth week of the finals, was a designated country songs theme with Kenny Rogers. Young sang "Tonight I Wanna Cry," and received fairly positive reviews. Jackson said it was living proof that Young was single, and Abdul said the song was perfect for his range and that he sang an adequate rendition of a contemporary country music hit. Cowell thought Young had made a good song choice. Kenny Rogers also gave him very positive reviews, and later Young said he got the best advice from Rogers.[9]
On April 18, the sixth week of the finals, was songs from the Great American Songbook week with Rod Stewart. He sang "That's All." For this performance, Young had his hair tied back and was dressed up in a McQueen designer suit. Jackson commented that Young stumbled in the middle, but did well overall. Abdul commented that she liked the "new Ace" and called it "a magical night." Cowell said "it wasn't bad," but while he said the middle was a bit nasally, he called the performance "charming." The following night Young was placed in the "bottom three" with Daughtry and Bennett and was eliminated.
| Week | Theme | Song Sung | Artist | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | - | "Swear It Again" | Westlife | Selected |
| Semifinals Top 24 (12 Men) |
- | "Father Figure" | George Michael | Advanced |
| Semifinals Top 20 (10 Men) |
- | "If You're Not the One" | Daniel Bedingfield | Advanced |
| Semifinals Top 16 (8 Men) |
- | "Butterflies" | Michael Jackson | Advanced |
| Top 12 | Songs of Stevie Wonder | "Do I Do" | Stevie Wonder | Bottom 3 |
| Top 11 | Songs of the 1950s | "In the Still of the Night" | The Five Satins | Safe |
| Top 10 | Songs of the 2000s | "Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)" | Train | Bottom 3 |
| Top 9 | Songs of Country Music | "Tonight I Wanna Cry" | Keith Urban | Safe |
| Top 8 | Songs of Queen | "We Will Rock You" | Queen | Bottom 3 |
| Top 7 | Great American Songbook | "That's All" | Nat King Cole | Eliminated |
On April 26, Young performed as a guest on Total Request Live. He has also appeared at the grand opening of The Camden House of Beverly Hills (an event showcasing rising stars under the age of thirty), was invited to the 2006 White House Correspondents' Association dinner, sang the national anthem at a summer Colorado Crush game and hosted a solo concert at the Pepsi Center.[4] Young continues to perform at the Pepsi Center in Denver.[10] He was named one of People Magazine's "Hottest Bachelors" on June 16, 2006.[11]
On October 20, 2006, he released his first single "Scattered," with help from friend Elvio Fernandes, a musician in Rochester, NY. a digital download on iTunes Store.
Young helped write the chorus to Daughtry's debut single, "It's Not Over."
Young appeared and sang on the 2006 Walt Disney Christmas Day Parade along with fellow idol finalists Paris Bennett, Kevin Covais, and Mandisa.
On December 6, 2007, the 50th Annual Grammy Award nominations were announced and Young was nominated for Best Rock Song, alongside Gregg Wattenberg, Mark Wilkerson and fellow American Idol alumnus Chris Daughtry, for his songwriting credit in Daughtry's debut album lead single It's Not Over. He lost to Bruce Springsteen's "Radio Nowhere.".[12]
In January 2008, Young was named a Celebrity Ambassador for the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), where he will spend time assisting the charity with events and raising awareness for neuromuscular diseases.
On April 15, 2008, Young released his second single, Addicted, available on iTunes and Amazon.
On May 12, 2008 he appeared on FOX's hit show Bones alongside season six American Idol Contestant Brandon Rogers.[13] He played the part of a karaoke singer who ends up murdered and sang Nickelback's "Far Away".
He appeared on TNA Impact on Thursday May 29, and debuted a new version of his "Addicted" music video, and also came out ringside with So Cal Val to support Jay Lethal and Sonjay Dutt in their match.
Young appeared on TNA Wrestling's Slammiversary, and got into the ring after Sonjay Dutt destroyed the wedding scene.
Young's self-titled debut album was released on July 15, 2008. Young co-wrote seven of the eleven tracks on the album.
Young performed on the Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon August 31 and September 1 live from Las Vegas. He also co-hosted several segments of the live television broadcast. He was then sent to New York City to host local cutaways of the 2011 show, replacing Tony Orlando.
On November 23, 2008, he made an appearance as a bachelor on the VH1 show, Rock of Love: Charm School
Young made his Broadway debut as Kenickie in the revival of Grease from September 9, 2008 to January 4, 2009.[14] Young joined the national tour of Grease on December 1, 2009 this time playing Danny Zuko.[15] He left the tour on February 14, 2010 and was succeeded by Josh Franklin, who will close the production.[16]
He most recently starred as Berger in the Broadway revival of Hair. He succeeded Tony Award nominee Will Swenson beginning March 9, 2010 and remained with the production till its closure on June 27, 2010.[17][18]
On April 18, 2011, he was featured on a song titled "Picture Me" on British rapper Chipmunk's second album, "Transition." Young's vocals are present during the chorus and bridge of the track.
On November 21, 2011, he appeared on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills performing a song.
Young is currently based in Los Angeles, California. He is living with another American Idol contestant, season 3 runner up Diana DeGarmo. The couple met while co-starring in the musical "Hair" on Broadway in 2010.
| Year | Album details | Peak | Certifications (sales threshold) |
|---|---|---|---|
| US | |||
| 2008 | Ace Young
|
160 |
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| Year | Single | Peak positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Pop |
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| 2006 | "Scattered" | — | n/a | ||||||
| 2009 | "Addicted" | 77 | Ace Young | ||||||
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | |||||||||
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