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Imagine having to sing for your dream to come true in front of one of the biggest names in the music industry. That’s exactly what the final 32 acts had to do during the final process of auditions.
The contestants traveled to their respective judge’s house, where they waited and anticipated who would be critiquing them on their final performance and becoming their judge-mentor if the contestants make it to the live shows. The girls flew out to France where Simon Cowell greeted them, the boys to the Hamptons where L.A. Reid greeted them; the groups to Santa Barbra where Paula was waiting; and the over-30s traveled to Malibu where Nicole welcomed them into her home.
As the excited, screeching girls came to terms with having Simon as their mentor; he made a disappointing announcement. Guest judge and friend Mariah Carey was meant to be there to help him with his decision but due to Hurricane Irene she was unable to make it out, therefore leaving Simon to make the decisions with help from experts in the industry.
First up for the girls was Simone Batte, 22, who sang amazingly; however, the concerning outfit was a problem – hooker heels did not suit her slim figure and left me forgetting about how she sounded and more about how she looked. Favorite Rachel Crowe, 13, yet again blew Simon away singing her own version of Backstreet Boys. Anything that comes out this girl’s mouth sounds magical. Her voice and charisma is unbelievable. Crowe is the youngest contestant in the competition but certainly doesn’t act like it. Melanie Amaro, 19, also shined for her voice; she was outstanding.
As L.A. welcomed the boys, he had a little surprise for them, not only were they singing in front of him but also award-winning artist, Rihanna. Of course, the boys’ eyes all popped out when they saw the beauty standing with L.A. Brian Bradely, 14, was first up for the boys when, no surprise, he rapped. Although he got away with the “cute factor,” his cocky attitude and arrogance did him no justice. In fact, it was annoying.
Hats went off to Phillip Lomax, 22, who very charmingly sang one of Rihanna’s songs. Shocked L.A. looked nervous but relieved at the end when Lomax actually blew Rihanna away – yet his cheeky smile would have been enough for me. Marcus Canty, 20, easily gave the best performance out of the boys, sounding note perfect and looking gorgeous. For me, the disappointing act was from Chris Rene, 28 where hearing him seemed impossible over the loud background music. Did he do enough to impress L.A.? I hope so.
Paula bought along American hip-hop artist, producer and fashion designer Pharrell Williams for help with the groups. Members of The Anser, ages 21-27, performed as though they were already an award winning boy-band. The judges put two groups together during boot camp, InTENsity and Lakoda Rayne – one group sounded enjoyable, one not so much. InTENsity, a group of 10 – as if the name wasn’t obvious – came across very High School Musical-meets-Glee, a market that is getting old and unoriginal. The performance was very immature in comparison to the other groups. Lakoda Rayne sounded great, but the group’s cohesive look was not complimentary – a serious makeover needs to happen should they make it to the live shows.
Spanish pop singer Enrique Iglesias joined Nicole to help with what seemed to be the hardest of categories: the Over-30s – Nicole’s job was the hardest of all the judges, as she could make or break their last chance to achieve their dream.
I am a big fan of Stacey Francis, 42, but it seems that her performances so far have been very static. Her voice is fantastic but can get boring. I must admit, I do have a crush on LeRoy Bell, though – having a crush on 60-year-old is fine, isn’t it? Bell, who looks 30 years younger than his age, performed like a star, and his voice sounds like a god. Josh Krajcik, 30, also flawlessly performed, making decisionsfor Nicole extremely hard.
On Tuesday we will see who made it to the live shows and whose dreams got shattered. For Girls, Rachel Crow, Melanie Amaro, Jazzlyn Little and Tiah Tolliver will hopefully move on. For Boys, Marcus Canty, Chris Rene, Brennin Hunt and Phillip Lomax. For Groups, The Anser, The Stereo Hogzz, 4Shore and Lakoda Rayne. Finally, for the Over-30’s: LeRoy Bell, Elaine Gibbs, Josh Krajcik and Stacy Francis.
The X Factor, Tuesday 7p.m. Fox 31
