Stories from Hollywood

Background:

Jon Peter Lewis, known as JPL among his avid fans, rose to prominence as one of 12 finalists of the third season of “American Idol” in 2004. He was voted off in eighth place after a brassy rendition of Elvis Presley's “Jailhouse Rock” during movie songs week on April 15, 2004. As a Top 10 finalist, he played over 50 American venues and a date in Singapore as as a part of the American Idol Season 3 tour. Lewis released his debut album, “Stories from Hollywood,” on November 7, 2006. He also has two holiday albums, “Now Christmas 2” (2005), released in Canada, and “Breaking for the Holidays” (2006). Among songs he has released include “Turn to Grey” (2004), “It's Christmas” (2005), “If I Go Away” and “Man Like Me” (both 2006).

In addition to singing, Lewis also has found interests in portrait artist, athletic and mediocre break-dancing. He cans speaks Spanish fluently and mentions Paul McCartney as is his favorite pop artist. His favorite color is green.

JPL

Childhood and Family:

Jon-Peter Lewis was born on November 7, 1979, in Bakersfield, California. He is the sixth child of eight children of Carol and Paul Lewis Jr., a professional musician and military man. JPL, as his fans would affectionately call him, started to sing at the age of 3. He later majored in English and Musical Theater at BYU-Idaho. He spent his upbringing in various cities across the United States with his nomadic family until age 18, when he went emancipated.

Idol 8

Career:

Growing up in a family with orientation in music, Jon Peter Lewis began singing as a little boy and knew that someday he would pursue a career in entertainment industry. Finding his talent, his pro musician dad, who played with the 1960s band called The Markettes, entered young Lewis in a number of performing arts choirs and schools and by age 10 he was accepted into the esteemed American Boys Choir in Princeton, New Jersey. He became less interested in his classical upbringing during high school, but went on to achieve top choir and theater honors, including the Outstanding Senior Award from the state of Wyoming. His theater credits include “Guys and Dolls” (played Nicely Nicely), “Joseph and the Technicolor Dream-coat” (as Joseph), “The Hobbit,” “Annie,” “The Sound of Music” and numerous other plays. Recalling, he said,“What I like about theater is I can step out of myself and be someone else for a little while.” Also in high school, Lewis, who plays a variety of instruments like the guitar, harp and cello, picked up his guitar and joined a blues/funk band called Johnny The Cockaroo and the Mojos.

It was not until 2004 that Lewis entered a new phase in his life. He decided to leave his college and auditioned for the third season of “American Idol” in Honolulu, Hawaii. Singing Van Morrison's “'Crazy Love” for the audition, Lewis received hard critics from Simon Cowell, who told him “You have a good voice, you look like a pen salesman, and you have the personality of a mouse.” Undaunted, he continued to show his earthy stage personality. Later , Cowell called Lewis as “the dark horse to win the competition,” while Rolling Stone magazine nailed down him as a “pick to win.” Lewis also received praise from Elton John for his excellent pitch and phrasing.

Lewis was a member of the third group of finalist and performed “Tiny Dancer” by Elton John. Placed third in the group, he was not selected to the final round, but brought back to the show for the wildcard round. Following an avant-garde performance of Elvis Presley's “A Little Less Conversation,” he won 22% of all votes cast and became one of the top 12 finalists of “American Idol.” Rolling Stone stated, “Thanks to his crazy dance moves and spirited rendition of Elvis' “A Little Less Conversation,” Jon Peter Lewis is our long-shot pick to win American Idol. He's the weirdest li'l guy to make it into the Idol finals yet, and that's definitely a good thing. Simon Cowell called him the 'dark horse to win the competition,' and Paula Abdul even compared him to Beck. Who knew Abdul was so hip?”

On April 15, 2004, during movie songs week, Lewis offered a cheap rendition of Elvis Presley's “Jailhouse Rock,” which became his final performance on the show. He became the fifth of 12 finalists to be eliminated from the contest. During his tenure on the show, Lewis had demonstrated a three-octave vocal range and developed a solid fan following. He spent the summer of 2004 participating in the 50-city American Idols Live tour and also performed one date in Singapore as a part of the American Idol Season 3 tour. Aside from group numbers, he also played a solo of Stevie Wonder's “Superstition,” performed a duet version of Prince's “U Got the Look” with Amy Adams, as well as sang popular version of Outkast's “Hey Ya,” with Fantasia Barrino, Latoya London, and Jennifer Hudson singing in the backup.

Lewis went on to pursue a solo career and started to write his own music. “Turn to Grey” (2004), a download single of blues-funk, marked one of his early outcomes. The following year, he teamed up with independent music producer James Collins to write and record “It's Christmas,” which was launched in Canada as part of the “Now Christmas 2” album (EMI). The song reached No. 13 on the Canadian radio charts. In 2006, he recorded the second holiday song “California Christmas” and it was included in the 2006 album “Breaking for the Holidays” ( Breaking Records).

In September 2006, Lewis released his second single comprising the songs “If I Go Away” and “Man Like Me” via his indie-label, Cockaroo Entertainment. His debut album, “Stories from Hollywood,” followed on November 7, 2006. It is a collection of energetic rock and roll and intimate acoustic tracks.

Now, a resident of Los Angeles, Lewis has continued to perform with his band throughout the state side. Members of Lewis' recording and concert band have included Skyler Elobar, Dave Angel, Andrew Synowiec, Craig Macintyre, Ian Hendrickson, Lee Ferris and his cousin, Ben Mathews. He is also a frequent television and radio guest.

Awards:
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