Christopher "Chris" Rene is an American singer-songwriter, musician and producer from Santa Cruz, California. He had been in band Diversion and also had a solo career, including the album Soul'd Out. He applied to the first season of The X Factor USA with one of his original compositions "Young Homie" and was one of the finalists to the competition's live shows where he was mentored by L.A. Reid. He finished third overall in the competition, behind winner Melanie Amaro and runner-up Josh Krajcik.