An 18-year-old Arkansan will be among the contestants in the coming season of ABC's American Idol.
Noah Davis started as a nursing major at Arkansas Tech University in the fall of 2017. But he'll be taking a break this semester to pursue his dream of a career in music, the school said in a news release.
He already has one national title: He reportedly won the 90th National Future Farmers of America Convention and Expo talent competition in October 2017.
Davis is from Royal, a community with a population of about 4,500 near Hot Springs. He said he first became involved in music through church as a child.
"It's been a part of me since I can remember," he said in the release. "It's stress relief, and it's art. It's a way to express yourself. I love taking a song and making it completely new by doing it a whole, brand new way that I've never heard before."
Davis said winning the FFA competition gave him the confidence to continue pursuing music.
"It started out as a hobby, but I think anything you are willing to give 100 percent to, you can make a career out of it," he was quoted as saying. "I'm a kid from a little town in Arkansas, and I didn't expect to make it that far in the competition, much less to win. Just because you don't think you can doesn't mean you shouldn't try."
American Idol starts March 11 at 7 p.m. on ABC.