Groups and overs. Is Simon coming back?
How to watch X Factor UK from outside the UK?
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The X Factor airs tonight at 7:00pm GMT (8:00pm CET, 3:00pm EDT, 12:00pm PDT) on ITV 1 (120min).
It looks like Simon Cowell won’t be appearing on the X Factor tonight, either. He is still recovering from his fall on Friday morning and will be watching the show from the comfort of his home. Britain’s Got Talent judge Alesha Dixon is set to take his place on the judges’ panel tonight.
Dermot starts the show on the main stage. He tells us Simon is not appearing on the show tonight, but Alesha Dixon is there instead. The judges are already seated behind their table. Alesha had 5 hour notice to get ready and turn up for the show. She will be championing the groups tonight.
Stormzy is tonight’s musical guest.
The Cutkelvins: Pink – What About US
They come from a big family with 6 children. One of the boys has a baby son.
Shareen is doing most of the singing and the boys are once again playing DJs. The vocals aren’t perfect, but The Cutkelvins make Pink’s beige hit better and less boring than the original.
Sharon calls the performance ‘phenomenal’ and really exciting. She thinks they are young, exciting and relevant. Louis says they’ve got it all and family chemistry. He tells Scotland to vote. Nicole loves the song and Jay’s high note. Alesha calls them brave for taking on Pink’s song and says they’ve made Simon proud.
Kevin Davy White: Rihanna Ft. Mikky Ekko – Stay
He is from France, but he moved to London because British capital has a better music scene. We see him busking on the streets. In London he met his girlfriend.
He starts the performance sitting on the stool. He is not playing a guitar this time. He is making the song his own with his vocal delivery. He hits a crazy note before the last chorus. Female judges give him a standing ovation.
Louis calls the performance perfect, he calls him an artist. Sharon says his voice is rich and warm. She says the song suited him perfectly. Alesha says it doesn’t get much better than what Kevin did on the stage. Nicole wants to climb on the table. She wants everyone to hear his voice.
Talia Dean: One Direction – What Makes You Beautiful
Talia Dean receives a phone call from the X Factor – she won the wildcard of her category. She lives with her boyfriend and their son.
Here is another puzzling song choice – Talia is singing One Direction’s first and signature hit, ‘What Makes You Beautiful’. She is trying to turn a bubblegum pop song into something else, but she is not succeeding. It’s just bizarre. Her vocal also wasn’t perfect, especially at the start.
Louis says the public made the right decision. He says she reminds him of a young Barbra Streisand. Sharon calls her performance very good. Alesha didn’t like the re-arrangement of the song and asks for more uptempo performances. Sharon says Talia’s voice was ‘ripping’.
Jack & Joel : Dua Lipa – New Rules
They receive the news by phone and one of them asks if they are joking. The caller gets annoyed. They met a Oxford, so their VT is partly filmed in a library there.
They also ditched a guitar for their first live show performance. Their harmonies are a bit messy and the male pronouns might make the audience uncomfortable. They insert a rap into the song. I think they are this year’s joke act.
Sharon praises the song choice and says it suited their personalities. She calls their performance very good. Louis also praises their personalities and calls them fabulous. Nicole is happy to see them back. She wants to read books with them. Alesha has never seen ‘such polite rappers’. She also praises their song choice.
Dermot interviews Stormzy. Rai-Elle joins them. Stormzy was at Rai-Elle’s school and heard her sing there.
Matt Linnen: Alessia Cara – Scars To Your Beautiful
Matt is currently single and can cook and iron clothes! Ladies, get in line! He meets his friends in a pub.
Matt also ditched his acoustic guitar for this performance. He has a backing band on stage. I don’t think this arrangement allows his vice to shine, especially in the first half of the performance. It doesn’t even look like he is enjoying himself on stage.
Louis says this is the start of his journey. He thinks this song will be a hit. Sharon calls him ‘trouble’. She praises his version of the song and says this was the performance of the night so far. Alesha absolutely loved the grit in his voice. Nicole praises the texture and tone of his voice.
Sean & Conor Price: London Grammar – Strong
They are from Ireland, so we see lots of green and sheep in their VT. Their mother tells them to take fresh laundry with them to London. The boys don’t live the X Factor mansion because one of the brothers is only 15. They instead live in an apartment.
They must be the first act to play an instrument this weekend. Their vocals just aren’t great. The brother that plays guitar (Sean) ditches it to insert an original rap into the song. I predict the rapping will soon get annoying if everyone continues to rap. Honey G’s impact!
Sharon asks them if they are happy with the performance and they answer positive. She calls their harmonies ‘sweet’. Louis thinks they have potential, but didn’t love the song. Nicole praises their song choice. Alesha also praises their song choice. Alesha was actually at their X Factor audition.
Tracyleanne Jefford: Gin Wigmore – Written In The Water
TracyLeanne is a single mom of three. We see her taking care of her children and talk to her mother.
Tracyleanne’s song choice is another song that very few people ever heard. I do think it’s a good fit for her voice. She bring plenty of attitude to the stage.
Louis calls her one of the nicest contestants and says she looks like a Kardashian and sounds like Amy Winehouse. Sharon calls her ‘honest and real’. Alesha praises her personality and song choice. Nicole says she looks like a million bucks and says she sounded amazing.
Rak-Su: Original song – Mamacita
The guys meet their mothers for dinner. They are childhood friends and have great rapport. We see Simon praising their original song in rehearsal.
‘Mamacita’ is a mix of singing and rapping. I think the chorus could be stronger, but the boys are good performers.
They get a standing ovation from all 4 judges. Sharon says they ‘nailed it’. She praises the song, performance and staging. Louis calls it the performance of the night. Nicole also loved the song and calls it ‘a home run’. Alesha calls the song sexy.
The vote is now open. It will only be open for 5 minutes! Dermot recites the voting instructions and then we see a recap of all the performances.
Alesha points out The Cutkelvins, Rak-Su and Tracyleanne. Nicole thinks Kevin was a stand out. Sharon names Kevin, Rak-Si and Tracyleanne. Louis likes Sean & Conor Price and Rak-Su.
The voting is now over.
It’s time for the results. Nicole and Alexa bring the overs and the groups on stage.
Safe:
Kevin Davy-White
Sean & Conor Price
Rak-Su
Matt Linnen
The Cutkelvins
Jack & Joel
Tracyleanne Jefford
Going home: Talia Dean
Well, one moment she is in and the next she is out. Her song choice tonight was SO SO WRONG for her. It’s too bad, with the right song she could easily stay in the competition.
Louis and Sharon think Rak-Su won the televote. And they are right!
Rak-Su will be taking on Grace Davies for this week’s winner’s prize – a trip to Pink’s concert at Madison Square Garden and a backstage pass.
It’s time for a Prizefight, a sing-off for the top vote-getters!
Grace Davies – Too Young
Rak-Su – Mamacita
The vote is now open! Stormzy is performing after the commercial break.
We are back and the voting is now closed.
Our musical guest tonight is rapper Stormzy. He is performing ‘Blinded by Your Grace’. He brings a guest: Labrinth. I’m going to guess Labrinth is singing the part that is sung by MNEK on the original recording.
Grace Davies and Rak-Su join Dermot on stage. The winner of this week’s Prizefight is Grace Davies!
See you next Saturday!
