Ok, so The X Factor may get a real bad rep from the purists, but I have always been one to
advocate the use of the platform to allow real talent to emerge from working class beginnings, giving people the chance to really make a mark on the music industry, something they could never get anywhere near in day to day existence. People will always slag it off because it is so immensely popular and successful, but that doesn’t mean that it is a bad thing at all.
Sure the “here today, gone tomorrow” culture it has perhaps exaggerated is at times unfortunate, and unfair on some true talent who have a small taste of success, before it slips away from them, but at the same time, it gives ordinary people the chance to change their lives, and have a music career.
I was a little late to the whole X Factor phenomenon to be fair, not watching it until 2008 properly (although I had seen the Ray Quinn/Leona Lewis final in 2006). I was probably one of the snobs who laughed at its early incarnation. Sure, I was a big fan of Pop Idol and Pop Stars etc when I was younger, but as I grew older, and got into metal, I started to leave it all behind. It was only as I grew even older that I became ever more eclectic, and more accepting of music of all genres, when I started to get back into my pop. As a result, I became more diverse in my musical landscape, and anything that was about music was always going to be a winner in my eyes.
That is why I am not a hater of the X Factor. For a start, it takes music to the masses, and it is still completely prime time Saturday night viewing at its finest.
Over the years, some incredible talent has been discovered, many of whom are still doing well today. Without the X Factor, there would have been no Leona Lewis, no JLS, no Olly Murs, all of whom have had hugely successful careers forged from the show. Alongside them, Alexandra Burke, Diana Vickers, Shayne Ward (to an extent) have all had successful solo careers, and done well from the programme, along with many others. Some however, have not fared quite as well with Steve Brookstein (the inaugural winner), Leon Jackson and many more fading away no sooner than they appeared, which was a shame. I think that a lot of the hatred to the show has come from the “here today, gone tomorrow” culture where acts come to the fore, and then drop off the radar quickly, with differing levels of success.
However, the point of this blog is not to reminisce about the previous seasons of the X Factor, but to look at, and assess, the staying power and the credentials of the latest crop of names from last years show, who will be potentially making waves in the charts over the course of the next few months.
Many would argue that last years contestants were the most talented and diverse bunch of contestants ever, and I would be inclined to agree entirely. This week I have read that Aiden Grimshaw is in final talks with Sony Music about securing a deal, with the label (which is part of Simon Cowell’s Syco record label), who have already inked deals with Cher Lloyd, One Direction, Mary Byrne, and Rebecca Ferguson. They also have this years winner Matt Cardle on the book, although I understand that Cowell is after sharing responsibility for Matt Cardle, as he attempts to make him a credible artist in the rock pop, singer songwriter mould. Cardle therefore becomes the first X Factor act not to be signed exclusively to his label, in what is a joint venture with Columbia records.
Overall though, those names alone display a startling amount of talent, so I will take them in turn.
Aiden Grimshaw was one of my favourites on the show, as he had a really distinctive voice, and was unlike anything the show had ever had before. I had him down as a potential winner, so I was pretty shocked to see him eliminated so early in the competition. He put in some awe-inspiring performances, his pyro-filled version of Ring of Fire being one that springs to mind, as well as the epic Diamonds Are Forever. However, his stand out performance was the heart wrenching version of Nothing Compares To U, which was one of the stand out sets from the entire series. He was criminally overlooked by the public in the week he went out, and should never have gone. He has a really unique style and a tone to his voice like no other. Dripping in pure emotion and endlessly engaging, he could go far, so long as he gets some incredible material to go with that voice. He also has the boyish good looks that will give him a made to fit audience on his entry into the pop world, as he will be somewhat of a heartthrob for teen girls everywhere. He is immensely talented, and I am so glad that public demand managed to get him a slot on the X Factor tour, even though he finished 9th (the top 8 only usually making the cut for the tour) and that his supposedly sterling performances on that tour have secured him the record deal his swagger clearly deserved. I will be waiting to hear what he releases, as it will hopefully be brilliant.
Cher Lloyd caused a lot of controversy on the show, but she had a really good run, ending fourth in the competition. She was one of the stand outs in the audition process, where she wowed everyone with a Keri Hilson version of Soulja Boy’s Turn My Swag On, which blew away the judges. From that moment, a star was born. She was only 16, but she had the swagger, and the charisma to make it as a pop star. You just couldn’t take your eyes off her. Sure, the style and the look wasn’t quite there are that stage, but it got better as the series went on, and she went out in style in the end. She had a bit of a bad run with the press, and the word on the street was that she was falling out and offending everyone. How much of that was true, and how much was paper talk, we will probably never know, and we shouldn’t let that detract from the music. She put in some awesome performances, with her version of Shakespeares Sister’s Stay being referred to as “the best performance of the season” by Cowell at one point, in what was truly a stunning vocal showing. She also did well with versions of Just Be Good To Me, Girlfriend, and The Clapping Song merged with Missy Elliot’s Get Ur Freak On. She was the first act ever on the X Factor to rap and do hip hop/R & B tracks so authentically. Cheryl Cole was a huge fan, (as was Cowell), with the Geordie lass clearly seeing a lot of herself in the Worcestershire upstart. She will not be for everybody, but out of the lot, she could be possibly the most “current” act the X Factor has ever had, and with R& B and hip hop being so big at this moment, she could do well. She has had some serious interest from the States, and I think that, if the songs are right, she will do really, really well. She could yet outshine the eventual winner, and become massive in the process, especially if her admirers in the USA can help her crack the States too.
One Direction, the boyband Simon Cowell forged from 5 young lads who didn’t quite make the cut for the live shows in the solo arena, are still the most likely to succeed out of all of these acts. They caused mass hysteria amongst the young girls who watched the show, and will undoubtedly be massive over the next year. They will, without a doubt, (in my mind anyway), reach the dizzying heights of success seen by JLS, and the arenas beckon. They will melt the hearts of teens everywhere, and will have a massive career in the process. To think of the hysteria that Justin Bieber causes everywhere, and then multiply that by 5, then you might get the idea as to how big I think these boys will be. I was genuinely shocked that they didn’t win, and although they came third, at one point I would have put my house on them walking the final. They had so much support, and caused scenes of chaos on their homecoming run prior to the final. They are not the best singers in the world, but they can hold a tune, and together, they are a force to be reckoned with. That is what you expect from a boyband. They don’t need to be the best singers ever, but as long as they can sing, they can dance, and they can stand there looking pretty for the girls, they will have no trouble selling records. It will be interesting to see in what direction the label wants them to go, but either way, they will sell records, and they will most definitely sell them by the bucketload. Big shout out to Harry too, who is from Holmes Chapel, about 15 minutes away from where I am from. Haha – I don’t ever recall anyone famous coming from Holmes Chapel before now!! All joking aside, the sky is really the limit for this lot. They put in some great performances too on the live shows, particularly Summer of ’69, Only Girl In The World, Total Eclipse of the Heart, and My Life Would Suck Without You.
Mary Byrne was one of the surprise packages of the series, and did better than most probably expected, coming fifth. She was older than the usual crop of talent on X Factor, but had a phenomenal voice all the same. She was reminiscent of the talent you often expect on Britain’s Got Talent more so than the X Factor, and had she been on that show, she might have been the next SuBo – she was consistent every week, and had an excellent voice, much in the same mould as SuBo – however, that doesn’t necessarily translate into “current” music, but all the same, she will sell albums by the bucketload, as there is a real market for music such as hers. However, she will never be big business on the singles charts, but that should not do her any harm. With a brilliant album of quality songs behind her, I am sure that it will sell well, and she could have a really successful career off the same. She has a classic voice, and excelled with soaring renditions on the live shows of It’s A Man’s Man’s World, There You’ll Be, You Don’t Have To Say You Love Me.
Rebecca Ferguson finished as the runner up to Matt Cardle, but could well have won the competition. Immensely unassuming and talented in equal measure, she shone throughout the entire series and put in some wonderful performances. Particular standouts were her versions of Feeling Good and Show Me Love, but she was brilliant every week and had such a beautiful and soulful tone to her voice. A unique vocal meant that she was one of the clear highlights and an amazing discovery, as she was clearly born to sing. In the end I was glad that she didn’t win, as her winners song would have been a cover of a dirgy Duffy track which would not have been a worthy song to give her. She deserved something so much better, and now she has her deal, she will definitely get her chance to release something more suited to her soulful stylings. She is a very classy and beautiful down to earth girl, much in the same mould as Leona Lewis was, and Cowell is clearly a big fan of hers. He likes the artists who are incredibly talented, yet shy and unassuming. With an album of the right material, she could be massive, and would sell a lot of albums. She may struggle to have success on the singles chart, but I don’t doubt that she could sell a lot of albums; much like Adele has done recently. The way Adele has paved the way for acts like Rebecca means that a hit single should not be discounted, and could still be a possibility, but album sales will definitely by the strong point of her. It will be refreshing to hear her debut when it comes out, and I can’t wait to hear THAT voice again.
So, I turn my attention to the act who won X Factor, and completes this list of contestants who have a deal at their disposal as I write. Matt Cardle was somewhat of an unlikely hero really, being a painter and decorator prior to auditioning, and blossoming on the X Factor stage week to week. He was never a personal favourite of mine, but I did warm to him as the shows went on, and he is incredibly talented. He has a very distinct voice, and was often given songs sung by female acts so as to show off his range and the talent at his disposal. It clearly worked, as he apparently won all of the shows outright bar one on the public vote, which is crazy. He clearly has a big following (perhaps with the housewife contingent) but either way, he seems like he could have a strong career on the back of X Factor. However, much will depend upon the songs he is given (and/or writes) as to how successful he will be and whether or not he can enjoy longevity. With Cowell roping in Columbia records to assist and try and make him a credible act in his own right, he could be well primed to take advantage of the singer songwriter formula which is doing well at the moment, and could continue to blossom. Only time will tell if he can shine as well as he did on tracks such as The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Just The Way You Are, and When Love Takes Over on the live shows, but the future does look bright for him.
All in all, series 7 of the X Factor did produce some potential stars of the future, and hopefully everyone above will do well in the charts in their own right, after the machine has come to an end, and the X Factor tour, which is currently touring venues up and down the country, comes to an end.
There were also a number of other acts this year who also could have done well, but didn’t quite make the cut this time. Treyc Cohen I thought would do quite well, but was eliminated fairly early. I saw a lot of Alexandra Burke in her, and she had a killer voice, but the public voted her out much earlier than she deserved really, which was a shame.
Some sterling performances by her weren't enough to provide her with a stay of execution, and maybe she suffered for being too similar to Alexandra, only a couple of years after she had won.
Katie Waissel also hit the headlines for the wrong reasons throughout the entire series, and (in retrospect) she did get a rough deal from it all. The public seemed to be pretty furious that she had made the cut after she was terrible at judges homes, with them thinking that her spot should have gone to Gamu Nhengu. Little did the public know at that time (which I maintain the people who do the X Factor did) was that Gamu was about to be deported from this country, which therefore would have meant she couldn't have done the shows. However, due to the way it was all edited, that didn't necessarily come across, and Katie managed to slip through the net.
That was pretty much the only week that I believed in her as an artist, and thought she pulled off the look quite well. She unfortunately never quite hit those heights again in the rest of the competition. She had a bit of a hate campaign against her, and it all just went downhill when she went in for that crazy @$$ haircut, and put in a few dodgy performances.
Simon seemed to like her, and I do wonder if there was ever a hidden agenda behind it all, and whether or not he had her in mind as a potential winner - I guess that we will never really know now.
Ultimately I don’t think her voice was strong enough to compete with some of the others, but she definitely made a mark.
However, she was certainly something different.
I do wonder if we will ever see her again. I wouldn't actually bet against it in all honesty - stranger things have happened, but she really didn't make a great impression on the public it seemed.
Belle Amie also shared a cruel fate in my eyes as well. Much like One Direction, Belle Amie were put together by Cowell for the live shows, picking four girls who didn’t quite make the cut as solo acts in the competition, and putting them together in a girl group. I thought they were really good, and once more, I will say it again, there just aren’t enough good girl bands out there these days. These should have been given an opportunity to develop. Had they been created outside of the X Factor bubble, they could have stood a chance, but as always, the teen girls voted them out way to early, but not before they could put in some brilliant performances of Airplanes and Venus, the latter getting them in the bottom two for elimination, even though it was one of the stand out performances of that week. They should not have gone home as early as they did.
It will be interesting to see how all of the above fare when they release material later this year. There are clearly some stars in the making though there, and they could do really well, with the right material, support, and exposure.
In another few months, the machine starts again, and I for one will be watching, eager to see what talent can be produced by series 8 of the X Factor.
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