James Durbin from his page on the American Idol web site. March, 2011.
| Genre(s) |
| Rock, Pop |
| Instrument(s) Played |
| Vocals |
| Band(s) |
| Hollywood Scars, Whatever Fits, GUITARMY, Collaborations w/White Album Ensemble |
| Website |
| James Durbin | Official Site |
| James Durbin's Musician/Band page on Facebook |
| James Durbin on Twitter |
| Contact Info |
| (Email?) |
Description
In 2011 at age 22, James Durbin received national attention as he gradually progressed to fourth place on the 10th season of the television show American Idol. The singer wowed the judges on the program with his energetic, passionate performance, and Jennifer Lopez broke into tears as Durbin was eliminated from the show. Also highlighted on the show was Durbin's personal backstory: the diagnosis of Tourette's and Asperger's syndromes Durbin received as a child, as well as his father's story. Also a local musician, Willy Durbin, a bass player, died of a drug overdose. Durbin's final week on American Idol included an additional cliff hanger; if he were to make it to the final three he would get to play a 'hometown' show at the Boardwalk. He did not make it to the final three, but after some wrangling from locals, the show's producers were convinced, and Durbin Day commenced on the Boardwalk's bandstand, with the singer singing (backed up by the White Album Ensemble) to a crowd of 30,000 fans.
James also participated in local music competitions; in 2010 he won the Your Music Magazine Santa Cruz Band Olympicks Vocal Solo event, and he was the first person to receive a scholarship from the Santa Cruz Musicscool. Dale Ockerman, who played with the Doobie Brothers, runs Musicscool, and in a Santa Cruz Patch article about Durbin he said, "I've worked with Mike McDonald, Bill Champlin, Steve Marriott, Richard Bryant- some of the best of the best, and he's up there with those musicians, a unique soulful powerful voice, he seems to not have any limits."1
Lisa Leuschner is also from Santa Cruz County and was on season 3 of "American Idol."
Live Shows
Upcoming Shows
Past Shows
- May 19, 2012, 5:30 pm — Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk 2012 Summer season kick-off concert.
- Durbin Day at the Boardwalk w/White Album Ensemble May 14, 2011
- July 11, 2011 — Idol Summer Tour at Power Balance Pavilion, Sacramento
- July 12, 2011 — Idol Summer tour at The Oracle Arena, Oakland
- July 13, 2011 — Idol Summer Tour at HP Pavilion, San Jose VIDEOS: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6C7824CAC09C8B79
- January 17, 2012 — The Beach Radio Station / VIP Promo Concert at Kuumbwa Jazz Center, Santa Cruz ARTICLE: http://www.goodtimessantacruz.com/index.php/santa-cruz-blogs-commentary/culture-beat/3414-rock-out-knockout.html#.TxhD07rZVSo.facebook
Releases
References
- 1http://santacruz.patch.com/articles/santa-cruz-fans-try-to-reach-out-to-american-idol-contender-james-durbin
- Santa Cruz singer James Durbin wows on 'American Idol', by Wallace Baine, Santa Cruz Sentinel, February 9, 2011
- The book of James: The amazing journey of James Durbin to 'American Idol', by Wallace Baine, Santa Cruz Sentinel, February 17, 2011
Related Links
- Wikipedia Article: James Durbin
- http://www.americanidol.com/contestants/season_10/james_durbin/
- http://jamesdurbin.org/
- James Durbin Community Page on Facebook
- City of Santa Cruz Durbin Day page
- Bands and Musicians
- Music
- People of Santa Cruz
- Famous Residents (Former and Current)
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Comments
2011-07-14 18:45:10 Video's of James from HP Performance: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL6C7824CAC09C8B79 —76.126.57.34
