La'Porsha Renae Mays, known professionally as La'Porsha Renae, (born August 1, 1993)[1] is an American singer-songwriter from McComb, Mississippi. In 2015 she auditioned for the fifteenth season of American Idol, which at that time was the final season. On April 7, 2016, she finished as runner-up on the show, behind winner Trent Harmon.[2] In March 2017, Renae released her debut album Already All Ready.
La'Porsha Renae | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | La'Porsha Renae Mays |
| Also known as | A.S.E. |
| Born | August 1, 1993[1] McComb, Mississippi, U.S. |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2016–present |
| Labels |
|
Biography
editEarly life
editLa'Porsha Renae Mays was born on August 1, 1993,[1] in McComb, Mississippi. At age 16, Renae auditioned for the tenth season of American Idol. After graduating from college at age 22, Renae was a victim of domestic abuse. After a year, she separated from her husband and moved back to McComb with her one-month-old daughter Nayalee Keya.
American Idol
editAccompanied by her daughter, she returned to audition for the fifteenth season of American Idol in Little Rock, Arkansas and earned her golden ticket by performing in front of the judges with Radiohead's "Creep". Renae was announced as the runner-up on April 7, 2016.
Performances
edit| Week | Theme | Song(s) | Original artist(s) | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auditions | Contestant's choice | "Creep" | Radiohead | Advanced |
| Hollywood Week, Part 1 | First Solo | "Roar" | Katy Perry | Advanced |
| Hollywood Week, Part 2 | Group Round | "Stayin' Alive" | Bee Gees | |
| Hollywood Week, Part 3 | Second Solo | Not aired | ||
| Final Judgment | Final Solo | "The House of the Rising Sun" | The Animals | Advanced |
| Top 24 | Contestant's choice | "Proud Mary" | Creedence Clearwater Revival | Advanced |
| Top 10 | Contestant's choice | "Diamonds" | Rihanna | Safe |
| Top 8 | Idol Grammy Hits | "Halo" | Beyoncé | Safe |
| Top 6 | American Idol All Time Song Book | "See You Again" (duet with Trent Harmon) |
Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth | Safe |
| "Come Together" | The Beatles | |||
| Top 5 | America's Twitter Song Choice | "Ready for Love" | India.Arie | Safe |
| "No More Drama" | Mary J. Blige | |||
| Top 4 | Classic Rock | "Wanted Dead or Alive" | Bon Jovi | Bottom 2 |
| Sia | "Elastic Heart" | Sia | ||
| Top 3 | Hometown Dedication | "Glory" | Common and John Legend | Safe |
| Scott Borchetta's Choice | "Stay With Me" | Lorraine Ellison | ||
| Judges' Choice | "Hello" | Adele | ||
| Top 2 | Winner's single | "Battles" | La'Porsha Renae | Runner-up |
| Simon Fuller's Choice | "A House Is Not a Home" | Dionne Warwick | ||
| Favorite Performance | "Diamonds" | Rihanna | ||
| Finale | Finale show | "It Takes Two" (duet with Trent Harmon) |
Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston | |
Post Idol
editCareer beginnings
editHours after the end of the American Idol, Renae announced that she had been signed to Big Machine and Motown Records.[3] American Idol mentor and Big Machine Label Group CEO, Scott Borchetta told Billboard the reason for the signing is "Because of the overwhelming fan demand and success of the farewell season of American Idol,." Ethiopia Habtemariam, president of MoTown Records will oversee Renae's album. In a post-Idol interview about her plans Renae indicated she would be leaving Mississippi, and she came under fire when she was asked about the Religious Liberty Accommodations Act, an anti-LGBT law in her home state, "I am one of the people who don't really agree with that lifestyle. I wasn't brought up that way."[4][5] Renae's single "Battles" debuted at number 22 on the US R&B singles chart with a first week sales total of 7,000.Renae's first live performance post Idol was on Live with Kelly and Michael promoting "Battles" which reached its peak at number 22 on US R&B Digital Charts.
In August 2016, a remix for "Battles" was released, called the Gold Medal Mix. It became the official song for the United States Women's Gymnastic Team for the 2016 Summer Olympics.[6] In November, Renae released the lead single to her upcoming debut album, entitled "Good Woman."
Career
edit2017: Already All Ready
editHer debut studio album, Already All Ready was released on March 31, 2017.[7] "Good Woman" is the debut single from the album.
2019–present: The Odessy of Love
editIn 2019, Renae released a single, "Solo", which failed to chart or garner any media attention, prompting her to go on an extended hiatus. After a hacker briefly took over her Twitter, she changed her social media handles to "ASEEternal", and returned with a new stage name, "A.S.E." In May 2020, she revealed plans to self-publish a seven-volume memoir series titled "Battles", the first book Meet Me on the Battlefield was published in June 2020.[8] In May 2022, she released a four-part album series: The Odessy [sic] of Love, independently through Man of Yah productions, with an accompanying music video for the lead single, "Black Swan" on YouTube.[9] The albums failed to gain any respectable media attention or appear on any chart. The albums were then suddenly removed from streaming platforms for unknown reasons.
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US | US Heat | R&B | ||
| Already All Ready |
|
113 | 1 | 15 |
| The Odessy of Love, #I: Battle Bayou |
|
— | — | — |
| The Odessy of Love, #II: Dead Read Sea |
|
— | — | — |
| The Odessy of Love, #III: Covenant Cove |
|
— | — | — |
| The Odessy of Love, #IV: Sea's Spring |
|
— | — | — |
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US R&B Digital[10] |
US Adult R&B |
US R&B/Hip Hop | |||
| "Battles" | 2016 | 22 | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Battles (Gold Medal Mix)" | — | — | — | ||
| "Good Woman"[11] | — | 5 | 35 | Already All Ready | |
| "Already All Ready" | 2017 | — | — | — | |
| "What's Love Got to Do with It?" | 2018 | — | — | — | Non-album single |
| "Solo" | 2019 | — | — | — | |
| "My Empty" | 2022 | — | — | — | |
| "Fallen" | 2022 | — | — | — | |
| "Black Swan" | 2022 | — | — | — | The Odessy of Love, #I: Battle Bayou |
References
edit- ^ a b c Folk, Antwane (2018-08-01). Samuels, Keithan (ed.). "La'Porsha Renae Covers Tina Turner's 'What's Love Got to Do With It?'". Rated R&B. Retrieved 2024-04-05.
In celebration of her 25th birthday, La'Porsha Renae has released a modern cover version of Tina Turner's Grammy-winning single…'What's Love Got to Do with It?'.
- ^ Slezak, Michael (April 7, 2016). "American Idol Series Finale Recap: Did the Right Contestant Win? Plus: TVLine's Series Finale Awards!". TV Line Media, LLC. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
- ^ Shirley Halperin; Fred Bronson (April 7, 2016). "'American Idol' Winner & Runner-Up Both Have Label Deals: Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
- ^ Avery, Dan. ""American Idol" Finalist La'Porsha Renae: "I Don't Really Agree With The LGBT Lifestyle"". NewNowNext. Logo. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
- ^ Smith, Nigel M. (11 April 2016). "American Idol's La'Porsha Renae draws anger for anti-LGBT comments". The Guardian. Retrieved 27 April 2016.
- ^ "2016 Olympics: 'American Idol' La'Porsha Renae Releases 'Battles (Gold Medal Mix)'". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-12-22.
- ^ "'American Idol' La'Porsha Renae Unveils First Single 'Good Woman': Exclusive". Billboard. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
- ^ "La'Porsha Renae Resurfaces with New Book Series, New Name". MJ's Big Blog. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ^ "La'Porsha Renae Releases 'The Odessy of Love' Album Series". Amethyst Music News Magazine. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
- ^ Kevin Rutherford (April 13, 2016). "'American Idol' Finalists MacKenzie Bourg & Dalton Rapattoni Debut on Rock Charts". Billboard.
- ^ "Adult R&B Airplay". Billboard. 28 November 2013.