At the age of 17, Leming dropped out of high school and began traveling across the United States to play shows while living out of his car.
16 Facts About Josiah Leming
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Josiah Leming was raised by his mother and stepfather alongside four brothers and four sisters, six of whom are adopted.
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Josiah Leming first learned the piano when he was eight years old, after his mother purchased a Casio keyboard for nothing.
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Josiah Leming played his grandmother's piano during visits to her house, and participated in school musicals and choirs.
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Josiah Leming dropped out of high school and left Morristown at 17, in an attempt to both make it as a musician and find a way to support his large and struggling family.
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Josiah Leming played in clubs and coffeehouses throughout the Southeast while working at restaurants and temp agencies to pay for food and gas.
7.
Josiah Leming traveled to Atlanta, Georgia in late 2007 when he heard American Idol would hold auditions there.
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Josiah Leming is the only contestant in the history of American Idol to not make the 'Top 24' yet still land a major label record deal.
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Josiah Leming was a contestant on Season 7 of American Idol; the producers were interested in his life as a traveling musician living out of his car.
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Josiah Leming became a popular contestant after singing his rendition of "Grace Kelly" by English singer Mika.
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However, Leming did not make it to the top 24 for his performance of "Stand by Me" by Ben E King; Randy Jackson and Paula Abdul refused to side with Simon Cowell in his wish to see Leming advance to the semi-finals.
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Josiah Leming's "To Run" is the only song written by an American Idol contestant to be covered in the Kidz Bop series.
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In 2007, before his appearance on American Idol, Josiah Leming self-released The Paperplain EP and Her EP on his MySpace page for digital download.
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Meanwhile, Josiah Leming recorded Come on Kid in London and Los Angeles, with the help of producers Jesse Owen Astin, Martin Terefe, Warren Huart and David Kosten.
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Josiah Leming recorded music independently in Burbank, California before returning to Tennessee in early Fall 2011.
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Josiah Leming released a new single "What You've Taken" on February 6,2011, in conjunction with the launch of his official website.