Jadyn Maria is back, but not doing Christian Music

A CMDish.com Exclusive

Jadyn Maria. Does the name ring a bell?

Maria jumped into the CCM scene when she performed guest vocals with Jody McBrayer on the song “Never Alone (iTunes)” The single, which was featured on a duet album entitled “It Takes 2,” received a fair amount of radio airplay on Christian AC and Christian Top 40 radio stations.

According to a long forgotten artist bio that CMDish.com uncovered online via her management company’s website, Maria was signed to a record deal at age 16 and was set to release a cd project in 2004. While singing at a wedding, Maria was connected with Troy VanLiere, manager of the group NewSong, who connected Maria to Sparrow Records. In 2004 alone, Maria toured before 100,000 people, sharing the stage with acts like Jump5 and Relient K.

Eventually, Maria was invited to join the R&B group GRITS in covering U2’s “With or Without You (iTunes)” It was an experience that Maria enjoyed, according to an interview with blogger Clayton Perry. “I was honored to do something a little bit different with it and to be a part of a project like that,” said Maria.

Maria’s own studio album was set to be released in 2004, but when an ad agency who represented the Herbal Essences shampoo campaign saw Maria’s “beauty, talent and wholesomeness,” the breaks were applied. In conjunction with the Herbal Essences campaign, Maria sang a song entitled “Rock You Senseless,” which can be heard on You Tube.

Unfortunately, Maria’s 2004 album never came to be and Maria disappeared into the abyss.

(Pictured Right: Maria at what we believe to be age 19. Photo courtesy William Morris Agency)

Jadyn Maria Resurfaces

And this time, she’s working a new angle in the music industry: Mainstream Pop.

Fast forward 2008.

Former Christian Music B-Lister Katy Hudson turned Katy Perry shocked the CCM world with her release of the song “Ur So Gay.” Come to find out, Perry and Maria are actually rather good friends, to the point that Maria appeared as one of the bridesmaids in the music video for Perry’s single, “Hot N Cold.”

In 2008, Maria moved to Atlanta, was signed to R&B singer Ne-Yo’s label, Compound Entertainment, and began working on her first, or second album, depending on how you look at it.

According to Ne-Yo, Maria has a, “A sweet tone, a gorgeous smile, a bubbly yet strong persona—not to mention a rather strong pen game—made Jadyn Maria just what I was looking for. It’s these attributes that will also make her a name you will remember.”

What’s to come for Maria?

An album entitled “Mans World,” is slated for a December 29th release. A few singles from the album are already available for purchase via iTunes, including her first radio single, “Good Girls Like Bad Boys,” (YouTube – iTunes), which could be considered scandalous to the ears of Christian radio listeners.

From the little that we’ve heard from her new album, the lyrics are sexually suggestive but very typical of pop music these days. However, just about all of the interviews that we’ve sorted through featuring quotes from Maria don’t seem to indiciate that she has given up her Christian upbringing. Maria is upfront about her time in the CCM bubble and seems to have no regrets.

We’re predicting big things in Jadyn Maria’s future, especially given the financial backings of Ne-Yo and his record label, Compound Entertainment.

Be sure to bookmark CMDish.com, as we’ll be sure to keep the Jadyn Maria coverage coming, as we get closer to her December 29th album release.