‘The X Factor’ UK postmortem: Why Sam Lavery was eliminated
We know that there are going to be a lot of other “X Factor” stories and headlines for us to get to over the course of the week, but before we get around to that, it feels only appropriate that we spend a moment figuring out why we lost (in rather-stunning fashion) someone like Sam Lavery who really should’ve made it to around the top five this season. Sure, she needed the Lifeline Vote the week prior, but we thought that was more of a temporary aberration.
Have we had time to process what happened? Absolutely, but we know that for some, this won’t take the terrible sting away from still having Honey G in the competition. We don’t want to turn this into a bash-session, so we won’t. After all, we do think that there are some reasons why Sam is gone that don’t have to do with the controversial rapper or the British public deciding to keep her around. (Also, there are an entirely different set of reasons why Honey is still there that we’ve gotten into in the past.)
Questionable song choices – Given that Sam is so young, we do think there should have been some more opportunities on the show to allow her to move around and show more of that fun side. Sometimes, this series gets too caught up in having everyone do ballads. It’s something that Emily Middlemas was clearly so frustrated with that she went against her own coach’s comments during the show.
For the record, we really liked her “I Will Survive,” but we know some out there were waiting for the tempo to speed up.
Trying to find her lane – This is something else that goes into being so young. We know that Sam is a really great singer with some rock edges to her, but we’re not sure we got a specific point of view as to who she is as an artist and what she wants to be. We’re not sure this will happen, but what she needs is a record deal that will give her the resources to figure out precisely where she wants to go. She needs time; she has the talent, and she could get there.
The edit – Finally, this didn’t do her any favors, either. Just remember for a minute that one of her most-notable moments on the show was Simon Cowell criticizing her makeup choice and telling her to go and change it. That’s a little different than other people remembered more for something singing-related. She didn’t have the same sort of screen time as someone like a Matt Terry or even a Honey G, so she had an uphill climb.
In the end, it’s hard to imagine Sam being too depressed over finishing where she did … even if we’re sure that she wanted to make it a little further. She is on the tour, so at least she can rest assured that her time on the series, and working with these people, is not over.
What did you think about Sam’s elimination and do you agree that she was the right person to go home? Leave us a comment in the box below with your thoughts. Want to get some other news on “The X Factor” right away? Then be sure to head over to the link here right now! (Photo: ITV.)