American Idol Profile: Who is Season 10 Finalist Stefano Langone?

Stefano Langone was chosen as a top 11 finalist for Season 10 of "American Idol," the popular Fox Television musical contest and reality TV show, in 2011. As such, Langano is listed for the 2011 "Idols Live" nationwide tour.

Langone auditioned for "Idol" in Nashville, singing a howlingly soulful version of Marvin Gaye's "I Heard It Through the Grapevine." Immediately, the judges compared the then-21-year-old singer and piano player to Bruno Mars and "Idol" Season 7 finalist David Archuleta.

"This kid could be on the radio right now," Randy Jackson exclaimed after a Langone performance.

The crooning comeback kid of "Idol" Season 10

After a near-brush with death in a May 2009 car crash with a drunk driver, Langone spent several months in a wheelchair. Paramedics carved up the car to remove him, and surgeons place plates and screws in his left arm, right wrist and left pelvis. The fresh-faced singer rolled up his sleeves in his first "Idol" audition, boldly displaying scars from the accident.

"They told me that I wouldn't be able to walk or write or be the same" the young singer explained. "I got on my feet in less than four months."

A year later, in May 2010, Langone was arrested near Seattle for driving under the influence, failing breathalyzer and field sobriety tests administered by the Washington State Patrol. He was released on bail and ordered to take an alcohol and drug class.

Fresh-faced future pop star

Born February 27, 1989, in Kent, Washington, Langone graduated from Kentwood High School and attended Bellevue College.

Saved as a judges' wild card to make the "Idol" finals, Langone has several years of formal singing training. His vocal work has focused on a capella, classical training and jazz. Langone credits Stevie Wonder and his own father Ernest Langone as musical influences. His favorite artists have included N'Sync, The Three Tenors and Ella Fitzgerald.

The baby-faced heartthrob and songwriter revealed that he has dreamed of singing at the Super Bowl and at the Grammy Awards with his father since he was a child. His grandfather Don Langone owned San Jose's Langone Music Store, where he offered music lessons.

His mother proved her personal prowess, becoming a culinary favorite of the Season 10 finalists by whipping up a home-cooked Italian meal in the "Idol" mansion. Although "Hell's Kitchen" celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey dissed her cooking on-camera, "Idol" host Ryan Seacrest and Langone's fellow contestants raved about the authentic dishes.

During the early weeks of Season 10, Langone sang Mars' "Just the Way You Are," Smokie Norful's " Need You Now," Wonder's "Lately," Simply Red's version of Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes' "If You Don't Know Me by Now" and Lionel Richie's "Hello."


source:Linda Ann Nickerson, Yahoo! Contributor Network