Nephew of English teacher competes, performs on the 2011 season of The X-Factor

“How hard are you prepared to work?” Simon Cowell asked. Fighting his nerves, John Lindhal confidently replied, “As hard as you can imagine.”After making it through his first audition in Los Angeles seven months ago, Lindahl, the nephew of Boyd English teacher, Sharon Harbeck, has been working toward the live performances of the show.“It was incredible,” he said. “I didn’t even expect to get past the first round but then I got my first call back and a second call back and then another call back. I didn’t even think I’d get half as far as I did.”Lindahl first heard about the auditions after his mom saw an ad on the Internet for The X-Factor, so, he decided to chance it and try out.“Seeing all of these amazing singers like Michael Jackson, Chris Brown, Usher, Justin Bieber makes me want to be in their position and I got a feeling that I could, so I decided to try it,” he said. “Just give it a go.”Lindahl auditioned with the song, “Forget You” by Celo Green earning him a “yes” from all four judges.  He said that he plans to work as hard as possible to make it as far in the competition as he can.“My strategy is to go to any means possible to not get cut,” he said. “Just do whatever it takes.”

Although he is one of the younger contestants on the X-Factor, Lindahl said that music has been a part of his life for as long as he can remember.

“My earliest memory of singing was when I was driving up to Lake Tahoe when I was three and my family was playing Barry Manilow in the car and I was singing along,” Lindahl said. “That’s when I realized that I really love music.”

Harbeck said that her favorite memory of her nephew performing was when he sang her favorite song for her birthday one year.

“When John was little he sang his own twist of a song I really liked and recorded it on a CD for me,” she said. “It was so sweet and thoughtful.”

While singing for his family may have given him fans at home, Lindahl still had to impress America’s toughest critic, Simon Cowell.

“When I first walked out I was so scared, actually, petrified, but when I got out there and they [the judges] had a casual conversation with me I realized that they were just normal people and that really loosed me up,” he said. “They are really nice people.”

Lindahl said that the positive feedback he received from the judges both boosted his confidence and helped him improve his talent.

“It was really overwhelming,” Lindahl said. “They are some of the biggest producers and names in music, so to have them see potential in me- it was amazing.”

Lindahl has been receiving acclaim from more than just the judges; his voice has earned him a fan base across the globe.

”I was on Facebook and this girl from Slovakia messaged me, and this one from Brazil, it was crazy,” Lindahl said.

Although he is gaining popularity around the world, Lindahl said that high school life is generally the same.

“I can say the seniors are a lot nicer to me,” he said. “But my friends are still my friends, they stay loyal and true.”

Lindahl’s ultimate support comes from his family. Harbeck has been supporting him throughout his journey on the X-Factor by sharing updates and clips from the show with her classes.

“When I found out John made it I was excited and shocked,” Harbeck said. “You just don’t think someone in your family is going to meet Simon Cowell.”

Harbeck said that she wasn’t that surprised though because artistic ability runs in the family.

“My family is very creative, we have an artistic thing in us,” she said. “We have this need to preform- to produce something unique.”

Harbeck said she believes that, whether he wins or not, the X-Factor will be a great learning experience for Lindahl.

“It can be really exhausting, the way they make them work from early morning until night,” Harbeck said. “Dancing and singing and learning songs, running from one shoot to the next. It all sounds very glamorous, but in the end it is tiring. I think John will get a good understanding of how the [music] industry really is and that will be good for him to see so young.”

Lindahl said that it has been a great experience to work with and learn from the other musicians behind the scenes.

“We were in the holding room while the judges were deliberating and someone got on the piano and started playing this gospel tune,” Lindahl said. “All 150 of us joined in singing and it was the coolest thing ever, just amazing.”

Even if he doesn’t win, Lindahl plans to keep pursing his dream.

He said, “I’ve been told ‘no’ so many times, but I kept going and going and going, eventually, something good will come out of it.”

Written By: McKenzie Johns and Zoë Denton