Jason Castro

“I have a simple goal,” says Jason Castro, “and that is to create songs that grab you by the soul and make you feel! Songs that inspire! Songs that give joy! Songs that make you dream!”

With his warm, evocative vocals and distinctive charisma, Jason Castro has already earned bountiful acclaim and a fervent fan following. The Texas-based tunesmith – best known as the third runner-up on the 2008 season of Fox’s American Idol – is now hard at work on his hugely anticipated debut album, set for release on Atlantic Records later this year. Among Castro’s creative collaborators are Grammy Award winning producer John Fields (Lifehouse, Switchfoot, Soul Asylum) and such acclaimed songwriters as Kara DioGuardi (Kelly Clarkson, Jewel, Santana), Martin Terefe (Jason Mraz, KT Tunstall), Sacha Skarbek (James Blunt, Jason Mraz), Guy Chambers (Robbie Williams) and Jason Reeves (Colbie Caillat).

A multi-talented singer and guitarist, Jason was among the most popular and talented artists in American Idol history, entering the record books as the first contestant to play an instrument on the show. His performance of the Leonard Cohen-penned classic “Hallelujah” proved such an audience favorite that the late, great Jeff Buckley’s rendition of the song hit #1 on the iTunes chart the following week, selling an astonishing 178,000 digital singles. Jason scored a chart-topping single of his own a few weeks later with his interpretation of “Somewhere Over The Rainbow,” which also hit #1 on iTunes after a show-stopping performance of the song on American Idol. Upon the season’s conclusion, Castro was among the stars of the hugely successful “American Idols LIVE! Tour 2008.”

Since then, Jason has been hard at work writing and woodshedding the songs which will appear on his upcoming debut album. In December 2008, he teamed with Amazon.com to release a free download of “White Christmas” as a special holiday gift to his fans. Castro has also recorded a new version of “Hallelujah” which will be featured on the soundtrack to the upcoming film, Amar A Morir, set for a summer 2009 release.

As if that weren’t enough, Jason has been a prominent supporter of a variety of charity organizations. Last December saw him starring at a Garland, Texas Christmas concert benefitting the city’s Best Education Foundation. He has also been an active supporter of the National Academy of Recording Arts and Science’s MusiCares Foundation.