X Factor UK Season 14 Power List

The second weekend of live shows for 2017 finished with some surprises. Sure, the acts that got sent home made sense (sorry, Leon and Tracey-Leanne). But the weekend’s winner caught me off guard, and judging by Simon mouthing an expletive upon hearing the result, I can say that it caught him off guard too. But more on that in the rankings.

X Factor UK 14 Week 3: George Michael Song Spoilers

For this week, I waited until we knew song choices and which acts are on which night before I wrote this list. This way, I can make more concrete predictions. We apparently are going to have only one act eliminated per night again despite Dermot saying otherwise last weekend (of all the things to steal from The Voice, why the bloodbath…UGH) Anyway, here we go!

Predicted Finishing Order

Rak-Su – I hate putting them first. I really do. As I’ve said before, they are not my thing. But they made the prizefight both weekends. The one thing that gives me hope is that they didn’t win either one, but the fact that they get there (and the fact that both of their performances so far were charting last weekend) makes them the frontrunners. My hope is that they get second place, because I’d really rather have Grace win. But if we have to have a year when an act that I don’t care for wins, let it be this year when nobody is really stellar. And at least they are talented. If 5AM won last season, I would have been angry. If Reggie and Bollie won the year before, I would have been furious. I know Rak-Su would do well for the franchise, so I can look on the bright side.
Grace Davies – She had a bit of a rough week. She went first, and the song she chose didn’t show her strengths. I presume she couldn’t have done an original song with latin music as the theme. Simon also kinda sorta bussed her. This week, she is being forced to do a cover again thanks to the theme. Hopefully this one turns out better, and the song choice makes me think it probably will.
Kevin Davy White – Kevin really shone last week. His guitar playing was amazing, and the vocals were pretty great too. He totally deserved to win the weekend, regardless of what Simon wanted. If Kevin keeps performing at that level, or even slightly below that level, I am confident that he will make the top 3.
Rai-Elle Williams – Rai-Elle’s vocals aren’t that strong, but she’s a star. She moved around the stage, she has an amazing personality, and she’s pretty marketable. That alone should get her to the top 4. But I’m not confident that it will.
Alisah Bonaobra – Simon kinda sorta tried to bus her last week, saying she was karaoke. But the torrent of booing from the audience upon him saying this was epic. Alisah isn’t original, but she consistently sings circles around basically every other act. Her vocals alone won’t get her into the top 5 especially when Simon and the producers don’t like her, but hopefully she makes it as close to the semi-final as possible.
Lloyd Macey – Lloyd can sing extremely well, but he belongs on West End/Broadway, not on a concert tour. And no song choice can fix that for him-it’s just the nature of his voice. He will still probably do well this week, because his style fits with Elton John’s music. His style isn’t right for the market, and that’s why he won’t make the semi-final.
The CutKelvins – The staging they’ve had really emphasized Sheeren over the two boys. And I still think that’s a mistake. Her voice is grating. I don’t get what the judges see in them besides the looks.
Holly Tandy – Despite what some of you may think, I do like Holly. She can sing really well and she is likable when she talks. But when she performs, she’s wooden. On top of that, Holly’s performance last week was rough. She tripped over the lyrics, and the song choice didn’t suit her. I hope this week is better, but regardless, I don’t think she’s going to make it to the semi-final.
Sean and Conor Price – As I wrote last week, they’ve been disappointing. Hopefully they do well this week, because to make it past the bloodbath they will need some great performances.
Jack and Joel – Last week was rough for Jack and Joel, with their mentor calling them cabaret. They are likable as hell, and their first audition was my favorite of all of the groups, but without their mentor even being behind them, they need to really pull off a miracle to make it past next week.
Matt Linnen – Matt didn’t get great feedback last weekend. He has a tough song this week, a song that he can’t possibly live up to. Unless he pulls off a miracle, he’s going home this week.
Sam Black – Sam is just so weak vocally. He didn’t go last weekend but this weekend is definitely his time.