James Durbin Season 10

[Love_Me]

James has grown on me. I like his attitude and the way he keeps trying to get better each week. He has embraced this once in a life time chance to really show what he is made of. I still think he is Adam 2.0 right now. I love Adam so maybe I am bias.

[RealityLovesMe]

I have to admit that James is doing a lot better than I predicted. Since many are comparing him to Adam and Siobhan, I will too. I like his performances better. Siobhan's were horrid with a big note at the end and Adam was too theatrical for my tastes. When I say "theatrical," I mean he had a voice for musicals and not for the "industry." All that being said, I wish he was more current. What he does is fine but he really needs to think about what kind of career he wants to have. It's 2011 and nobody is doing that anymore. A lot of these contestants have this problem so I guess he has time.
I have to mention his personality. Boy, is this kid a jerk! Right? He just kept going on an on about himself. I wonder if he thinks he's great (sarcasm, obviously). It is annoying. And he's been doing it every single week! This isn't like Lauren Alaina's evil eye.

[Love_Me]

I loved Adam and Siobhan. So I thought James was another copy cat, but he has continued to grow on me. The tail he wears in the back of his jeans has got to go. ha!

[BTW]

I think both issues have been mentioned in regard to him

I give him credit for performing as he does, with having two disablilities that might hamper him. That being said, he could go home anytime soon.

[pghbachfan]

I've worked with kids who have Asperger's and Tourettes, and I do not believe he has any ASD whatsoever, from what I've seen. I liked him in the beginning, but over the last 2 weeks, it has plateaued. He's now seeming cocky and arrogant.

[kyrjar]

I've worked with kids who have Asperger's and Tourettes, and I do not believe he has any ASD whatsoever, from what I've seen. I liked him in the beginning, but over the last 2 weeks, it has plateaued. He's now seeming cocky and arrogant.

Not meaning to be offensive, but most people I know that are professionals dealing with Asperger's do not diagnose from afar.

I can't imagine that he would have said it if some professional had not labelled him as such, which would mean that he at least has many of the characteristics. The range goes from those that are high functioning autistic to mild Asperger's, and I personally know that even mild Aspies face significant difficulties with social cues, sensory overload issues and not understanding how their outward behavior appears. Appearing arrogant is quite typical for an Aspie.

[carolb57]

I like James but he does NOT have the vocal range that Adam Lambert has and tends to go off key at times like he did this past week singing the Bon Jovi song. Adam has never sung an off key note in his life. My son says that you could punch Adam in the stomach and he would still sing on pitch!

I heartily recommend adding Adam's Glam Nation CD/DVD that was released today to your collection. The CD is Adam singing live at his Indianapolis concert and the DVD is the actual concert. Amazing! When James sings like this I will be HIS fan also!

[Annika]

James did great last night. It felt like he transitioned from being a boy into a man during his performance.

I also was pleasantly pleased at his insights about the song that he shared--before that point I wasn't sure if there was a mature understanding of music or if he was just a bit of an "idiot savant" -- a kid who could sing and mimic but no personal artistry/choice. Last night was the first night I felt that he was more than a great mimic.

[Love_Me]

James looked nervous for some reason in the piece they showed right before he took the stage. I am curious why he was so nervous about performing this song? I thought maybe he was told something and felt more pressure because he closed out the show last night.

However, once he started singing and dancing it all came together.

I have enjoyed his performances this season.

[RealVoyeur]

Not meaning to be offensive, but most people I know that are professionals dealing with Asperger's do not diagnose from afar.

I can't imagine that he would have said it if some professional had not labelled him as such, which would mean that he at least has many of the characteristics. The range goes from those that are high functioning autistic to mild Asperger's, and I personally know that even mild Aspies face significant difficulties with social cues, sensory overload issues and not understanding how their outward behavior appears. Appearing arrogant is quite typical for an Aspie.

James was great last night! This season is interesting for me because when we went into the top 24 I didn't have any early favorites to root for as I have every other season, so these singers have been having to "win me over", and James has certainly been doing that the last few weeks. I couldn't stand his over the top screeching in the audition and Hollywood rounds but he has really reined that in and he is becoming a favorite of mine. "Maybe I'm Amazed" is my favorite performance so far, I think he regressed a bit last week with the Bon Jovi song (but mainly due to a bad arrangement where he began the song right at the bridge before the chorus!) but this week I really enjoyed him, he and Pia were my top 2.