"There's no Asian [vocalist] that's huge out there. So I want to do that. I… Read Full Bio ↴"There's no Asian [vocalist] that's huge out there. So I want to do that. I want to break that mold."
-Jasmine Trias

Jasmine Trias has become one of more than a dozen former American Idol competitors to use the immensely popular show as a springboard to a recording career. During her time on the show, her popularity grew into a cult-like phenomenon as she won fans, not only in her native U.S., but the entire world over.

During the heat of the competition, the Internet played host to hundreds of fan-produced sites in a multitude of languages. In her ancestral homeland of the Philippines, it seemed like the whole nation was experiencing "Jasmania," as headlines in the capital's newspaper declared "Everybody Wants Jasmine."

Since 2004, Jasmine has been busy getting her solo recording career off the ground. While she has been visible through fast-food chain promos and the release of her debut album in 2005, it seems that Jasmania has cooled somewhat since she was a finalist on America's widely popular singing competition. Her album and singles have failed to make much of an impact in the all-important U.S. market, although she's still a sensation in the Philippines.

Jasmine's still got plenty of time to develop her career as a recording artist, and she's also taken the leap into acting. But that's still not enough for the energetic entertainer, who hopes to build, in her own words, "an empire." Her ambitions also include starting other businesses, such as lines of clothing and fragrances, a beauty salon, as well as a Filipino restaurant.

Biography:

Jasmine Soriano Trias was born on November 3, 1986, in Honolulu, Hawaii, and grew up in Mililani, a suburb in Central Oahu. She began voice training at the Performing Artist Academy of Hawaii when she was 8, took a break from formal instruction a couple of years later, and then returned to the Academy when she was 14. That same year, she represented her school in a state-wide singing contest, the Brown Bags to Stardom competition. She won that contest and went on to win the 2003 Road to Fame talent competition for youth.

jasmine becomes an american idol:

In the winter of 2004, Trias was selected as one of the top 32 contestants for the third season of FOX's American Idol. On March 17, she found herself amongst the final 12 contestants and debuted with the Natalie Cole hit "Inseparable."

Over the course of the next two months, she became one of the season's more popular competitors, generally impressing the trio of judges, and making the cut week after week. The Jasmania phenomenon was not only brewing stateside, but the world over, in places as far away as Singapore, Australia, Taiwan, and Germany.

In more than a dozen foreign countries on at least four continents, hundreds of websites promoting Jasmine's talents as a song interpreter popped up on the Internet during her tenure with the show, many in languages other than English. During the height of Jasmania in April 2004, the headline in The Manila Times (a widely read newspaper in her ancestral homeland of the Philippines) declared: "Everybody Wants Jasmine."

On May 19, Trias was voted off the show, finishing in third place after first runner-up Diana DeGarmo and the season's winner, Fantasia Barrino. Hawaii's Lieutenant Governor declared the following day Jasmine Trias Day for the entire state, while the city and county of Honolulu continued the celebration on May 21. Amid the hoopla, Trias graduated from Maryknoll School in June. She received a scholarship to attend Hawaii Pacific University, with initial plans to study nursing. Those plans were put on hold, as she decided to put her energies into her career as an entertainer.

jasmine trias releases her first album:

Trias hit the road with the other third-season American Idol finalists for a 2004 summer tour, which culminated in three sold-out shows at Neal S. Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu that September. She also received several endorsement deals in Hawaii and the Philippines. This included the release of a promo CD single for McDonald's in the Pacific nation titled "Love Ko 'To" -- a local translation of the restaurant's slogan "I'm Loving It."

In February 2005, an exclusive CD single titled "Flying Home" was made available as a promotional track through Hawaiian Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants. She signed a recording deal with ClockWork Entertainment; her self-titled debut album was released in the U.S. in July 2005. The 14 tracks showcased Trias as a pop-oriented R&B vocalist, but failed to make much of a dent on the charts stateside. It climbed to No. 11 on Billboard's Top Heatseekers Chart and to No. 1 on the New Artist Albums (Pacific) chart, but failed to rank in the Top 200 listings.

Jasmine Trias was issued on Universal Records on September 1, 2005 in the Philippines, where the single "Excuses" became a No. 1 hit. The Asian release contained bonus tracks sung in Tagalog, a first for Trias.

On September 12, she returned to the Philippines for a well-received week-long tour. While still pursuing a career as a vocalist, the Hawaiian native hopes to also make a splash as an actress.

I'd Rather
Jasmine Trias Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

I thought sometime alone
was what we really needed
you said this time would hurt more than it helps
but I couldn't see that
I thought it was the end
of a beautiful story
and so I left the one I loved at home to be alone (alone)
and I tried to find

out if this one thing is true
that I'm nothing without you
I know better now
and I've had a change of heart

I'd rather have bad times with you, than good times with someone else
I'd rather be beside you in a storm, than safe and warm by myself
I'd rather have hard times together, than to have it easy apart
I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
whoo-oo-oo-oo yeah

And then I met someone
and thought she could replace you
we got a long just fine
we wasted time because she was not you
we had a lot of fun
though we knew we were faking
love was not impressed with our connection they were all lies, all lies
so I'm here cause I found this one thing is true
that I'm nothing without you
I know better now
and I've had a change of heart

I'd rather have bad times with you, than good times with someone else
I'd rather be beside you in a storm, than safe and warm by myself
I'd rather have hard times together, than to have it easy apart
I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
who holds my heart

I can't blame you if you turn away from me, like I've done you,
I can only prove the things I say with time,
please be mine,

I'd rather have bad times with (please be mine) you,
than good times with someone else (I know)
I'd rather be beside you in a storm (anytime),
than safe and warm by myself (so sure baby)
I'd rather have hard times to gether,
than to have it easy apart
I'd rather have the one who holds my heart (my heart)

I'd rather have bad times with you (surely),
than good times with someone else (surely)
I'd rather be beside you in a storm (oh yeah),
than safe and warm by myself (all by myself)
I'd rather have hard times together,
than to have it easy apart (you know it)
I'd rather have the one who holds my heart

I'd rather have the one who holds my heart

I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
whoooo.....who holds my heart

Overall Meaning

The song "I'd Rather" by Jasmine Trias talks about a realization of how important someone is in another's life. At first, the singer thought that being alone was what was needed, but it turned out to be the opposite. She realized that the one she loved was the one she needed to be with, no matter the hardship. This is shown through the lyrics "I'd rather have bad times with you, than good times with someone else. I'd rather be beside you in a storm, than safe and warm by myself."

The song also describes how the singer tried to move on and replace the person, but it never worked out because no one else could compare to the one they loved. The line "love was not impressed with our connection they were all lies, all lies" shows that even though things may have been good with someone else, it was not genuine love.

Overall, the song emphasizes the importance of true love and how it's worth the hard times to be with the person who holds your heart. It showcases the growth of the singer's character and how they learned the true value of love.

Line by Line Meaning

I thought sometime alone was what we really needed
I believed that spending time apart would be good for our relationship.

you said this time would hurt more than it helps but I couldn't see that
You warned me that being alone would do more harm than good, but I was unable to see that at the time.

I thought it was the end of a beautiful story
I believed that our relationship was coming to an end, despite its beauty.

and so I left the one I loved at home to be alone (alone)
As a result, I left my loved one at home and chose to be alone.

and I tried to find out if this one thing is true that I'm nothing without you
I attempted to determine if the idea that I am nothing without you was true or not.

I know better now and I've had a change of heart
I have come to understand that my previous beliefs were wrong, and my feelings have changed.

I'd rather have bad times with you, than good times with someone else
I would prefer to go through difficult times with you than to experience good times with someone else.

I'd rather be beside you in a storm, than safe and warm by myself
I would rather be with you in a difficult situation, than being comfortable and safe on my own.

I'd rather have hard times together, than to have it easy apart
I would rather face challenges together, than have an easy time separately.

I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
I would rather be with the person who has my heart and love.

And then I met someone and thought she could replace you
I met someone else and believed they could fill the void that you left.

we got a long just fine we wasted time because she was not you
We got along well enough, but we were just wasting time because she was not you.

love was not impressed with our connection they were all lies, all lies
Our connection was not genuine, and love was not fooled by our claims.

so I'm here cause I found this one thing is true that I'm nothing without you
I am here now because I have realized that I am nothing without you and our relationship.

I can't blame you if you turn away from me, like I've done you,
I cannot blame you if you decide to turn away from me, just as I did to you previously.

I'd rather have the one who holds my heart
Once again, I am emphasizing that I would rather be with the person who is holding my heart.

Contributed by Natalie W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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