‘The X Factor’ USA rankings: Are Tate Stevens, Carly Rose Sonenclar locks?

Tate StevensWe have been saying for much of the past two weeks that Tate Stevens and Carly Rose Sonenclar were locks to be the top 2 on “The X Factor” USA, but after looking at the results that were just revealed in the United Kingdom for their version of the show this week, we’re really not quite so sure anymore. Why? The artist who was in first for almost the entirety of their competition (in Christopher Maloney) ended up placing in third after seeing his voting totals drop the final few weeks. To use the all-familiar cliche now, anything could actually happen here as the field tightens and fans of an eliminated singer (or in this case two eliminated singers) flock to other artists.

With this being said, it’s still hard to necessarily move the top two from the rankings this week, as we have to consider past voting results along with performance quality and perceived fan support.

4. Fifth Harmony (last week: 5) – This is the group that really seems locked in to their fate right now. Simon Cowell did a good job not only getting America voting for young girls (which is not always easy), but getting them to vote for a group full of them. It will take either an earth-shattering performance by them or a complete collapse by someone else to get them any further … and this is not meant to be any offense at all based on talent, but we know based on past results that the top three acts all have support bases of similar sizes.

3. Emblem3 (3) – One of the top two spots could be the boys’ for the taking, but for whatever reason yet they have not fully capitalized on it just yet. Emblem3’s biggest issue in the competition as of late has been getting away from what made them popular in the first place: fun, entertaining, and modern performances. They need to ditch the slow jams for a week, pick a song from the last ten years (or, dare we say it, something original), and if they can do this, there is still a chance that they could sneak into the top two.

2. Carly Rose Sonenclar (1) – Demi Lovato was right about Carly needing to go uptempo for a chance of pace, and this could be why she dropped in the official rankings this week. Viewers tend to tire of seeing the same thing week after week, whereas they reward people who are unafraid to take risks. Carly needs to do more in the next two shows beyond just showing that she has an unbelievable voice (arguably the best in the competition by far); she needs to showcase personality, vulnerability, and is, to use Simon’s own critique against him, human. Sometimes, being called an “alien” can be a bad thing in that it creates some sort of image of you as perfection or incapable of failure. If Carly wants to win, breaking that disconnect and letting the walls down is essential.

1. Tate Stevens (2) – We have to rely on the voting results here. Not only was Tate #1, but Mario Lopez in all of his robotic glory did not spew out any fact that the margin of victory was tiny. Tate may have got extra votes thanks to going last this past week, but whatever excuse you make for him rising or Carly dropping, there is one thing you cannot ignore: he is a nice, down-to-earth, American Dream sort of guy that you want to vote for. His story is simple but powerful, and with a strong voice and the country vote behind him, he is all but guaranteed a spot in the final three.

If you want an explanation as to why there are no official rankings being released this week, be sure to click here. As for our rankings, we want to hear your pick below to win as always!

Photo: Fox

X Factor News

 

Love TV? Be sure to like Matt & Jess on Facebook for more updates!