Tourette Syndrome is a neurological disorder that causes involuntary movements and noises.
A local teen who has Tourette Syndrome too is watching James' story closely and says his success could increase awareness.
"I really like the style," said Jacob Doepel, a teenager from Charlton. "High vocals...the movement."
Those are just some of the reasons Jacob thinks James Durbin is talented. But it is Durbin's courage that makes Jacob think he is a real idol.
"I thought it was cool because he was creating a lot of awareness about Tourette's," said Doepel.
Jacob, 13, was diagnosed with the same syndrome when he was seven.
"I have head jerks, I've had vocal tics, I've had blinking, I've had a lot of hand movements," said Jacob.
Jacob and his parents have worked to educate themselves and people around them.
"We get a lot of misconceptions through TV and movies. People hear Tourette they think the swearing and that's a very small percentage," said George Doepel, Jacob's dad.
"A huge misconception is that these are behaviors and that they can be controlled," said Judy Doepel, Jacob's mom.
The Doepel's say for the most part their community has been understanding, but Jacob says it's still tough. His tics sometimes cause him to miss class. And people aren't always nice.
"I've met some kids sometimes that tease me," said Jacob.
He also says that he can't predict when his tics will come on. But like Durbin and singing there are some activities that have helped Jacob some, like playing viola or basketball.
"I would start playing and my tics were gone," said Jacob.
"He's come up with his own techniques, he knows if a certain tics bothers classmates and may cause situation he's learned to change them," said Judy.
Jacob and his family hope Durbin's success will be a success for awareness too.
"He tells everyone up front I have Tourette and they no longer look at the Tourette, they look at him," said George.
"If you have a dream like being on American Idol then don't let it hold you back from it. Don't let anything hold you back from it," said Jacob.
