‘The X Factor’ UK desperate for next Little Mix, Union J, or One Direction: Report
In recent years, there has been one thing we have learned about “The X Factor” franchise: They love groups. Simon Cowell has been able to carve out a nice little market for himself with these sort of acts over the years, whether it be One Direction, Little Mix, Union J, or Emblem3 and Fifth Harmony on the American version of the show. He’s also shown that these acts do not need to win the competition as a whole in order to go on to have a successful career.
So what is the strategy now? Apparently to do whatever it takes to find good groups, including holding an extra day of auditions. According to The Sun, producers are still hoping to find more great talent, as there have not been a strong number of early standouts among the acts with the new audition format (which is similar to “American Idol” in the United States). Here is what one source had to say about their new process:
“Sharon [Osbourne] and Gary [Barlow] are teaming up against lacklustre talent — and without the arena audience being there to persuade them as in previous years, not many acts are making it through. Nicole [Scherzinger] and Louis [Walsh] are more open to the idea of developing the acts. But Sharon and Gary are insisting that they only want the best. It’s causing a bit of a split between the panel. Ideally, they want to get groups that have been together a while and have got chemistry, rather than having to make their own.”
So which pair of judges has the right strategy? It’s actually hard to say, given that we would not have met the entertainment gem that was Rylan Clark last year without Nicole putting him through, and Union J took some time to develop given that only three members of the group auditioned together. (George was added after the fact.)
Do you think extra auditions are a good or bad thing for “The X Factor” to be doing? If you want to check out the latest highlights from America, featuring Carly Rose Sonenclar and also Demi Lovato, be sure to check out the story over at the link here.
Photo: ITV