| Monogem | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Name: | Jennifer Ashley Hirsh |
| Born: | June 25, 1986 |
| Birth Hometown: | Agoura Hills, California |
| Occupation: | singer, songwriter |
| Years active: | 2012–present |
Jennifer Ashley Hirsh Melvin (born June 25, 1986), known professionally as Monogem (stylized in all caps), is a Mexican-American singer and songwriter. In 2015, she released her self-titled debut extended play, Monogem. She released her debut album, Gardenia, in 2021, which is also her first Spanish language album. Before starting her music career as Monogem, she appeared on season eleven of American Idol as a contestant where she placed in fifteenth place.
Monogem later released her second extended play, 100% (in 2017). In the next two years, she released her third extended play, So Many Ways (in 2019).
Early life and education[]
Jennifer Ashley Hirsh was born and raised in Agoura Hills, California. She attended college at Berklee College of Music in Boston and graduated.
Musical career[]
In 2012, Hirsh auditioned for the eleventh season of American Idol in Houston, Texas. In the semi-final round, she performed Adele's "One and Only", but was not one of the five highest female vote-getters. The judges selected her to be in the Wild Card round, and she performed "Oh! Darling" by The Beatles. Eventually, she was eliminated and did not advance to the Top 13, which she ended up in the Top 24 (placed in the Top 15).
After American Idol, Hirsh began her music career under the name of the Monogem Ring. The Monogem ring is a leftover glow from the exploded supernova stars. One of the largest monogem rings from the universe is located near the Gemini and Cancer constellations.
In 2013, Monogem released her debut single called, "Follow You" with two more singles called, "Wait and See" and "Stay With Me" in 2014. A year later in 2015, she released a single called "The Glow" and got released on January 20, 2015. These singles got included in Monogem's self-titled debut EP, Monogem on February 3, 2015.A music video for "Wait and See" got released on August 6, 2015, and was directed by Michael Guilfoil. Later on, Monogem released another single named "Gone" on October 9, 2015.
On April 22, 2016, a single named "Take It Slow" was released. A year later, on January 20, 2017, a single called "Wild" was released. On March 29, 2017, a music video for "Wild" was released, starring Matthew RC Taylor and Coco Arquette. On April 25, 2017, another single called "100%" was released by Monogem. The four singles from October 2015 to April 2017 were included in Monogem’s sophomore EP called, 100%, which was released on May 19, 2017.
After two years, three singles were released in 2019. The first single was from 2019 and is called, "Lean" which was released on May 15, 2019. On June 28, 2019, "So Many Ways" was released by Monogem, with a music video. And "Soy Lo Que Soy" was released on September 19, 2019. In the same year, a third EP named, So Many Ways was released on October 18, 2019.
In 2020, Monogem released two singles for her upcoming debut album. "Paraíso" got released on May 29, 2020. The second single, "Bésame Mucho" got released on November 20, 2020. This track is an ode to Hirsh's grandmother, in which her grandmother always plays Bésame Mucho by Consuelo Velázquez on repeat.
On May 20, 2021, Monogem returned with another single named, "Sólo Amor" with a lyric video. On July 15, the second single for 2021 was released named "Dame La Fuerza", joined with a music video. "Magia", the lead single for Monogem’s debut album, was released on August 26. Following the release of her single "Magia", Hirsh revealed in the accompanying visual video that she was expecting her first child with her husband, Jason Melvin.
Hirsh released her debut album named, Gardenia on September 2, 2021. The debut album also included one of the tracks of So Many Ways EP, "Soy Lo Que Soy". Gardenia was named in honor of Hirsh's grandmother, Hortensia, whose favorite flower was the gardenia. Hirsh made an announcement throughout on her social media, that she gave birth to her son on September 2021.
Monogem is currently working on a reimagined version for her debut album.