List of The X Factor finalists (UK series 12)

The twelfth UK series of The X Factor began on ITV on 29 August 2015. The live shows started on 31 October. In a change from previous series, there will be seven weeks of live shows instead of the usual ten. Viewers were asked to decide which categories would be assigned to each judge by voting on Twitter during the series premiere.[1] The results were announced on the day the Six Chair Challenge was filmed.[2] Nick Grimshaw mentored the Boys, Rita Ora mentored the Girls, Simon Cowell mentored the Overs and Cheryl Fernandez-Versini mentored the Groups.

The twelve chosen finalists were Ché Chesterman, Seann Miley Moore, Mason Noise, Louisa Johnson, Lauren Murray, Kiera Weathers, Bupsi, Anton Stephans, Max Stone, Alien Uncovered, 4th Impact and Reggie n Bollie.[3] On 29 October, Monica Michael (from the Girls category) was announced as the only wildcard on this series, with all four judges agreeing on it.[4]

Boys

The "Boys" category is mentored by Nick Grimshaw. Contestants in this category are male soloists aged between 16 and 25. The six candidates at judges' houses were: Ché Chesterman, Ben Clark, Josh Daniels, Simon Lynch, Seann Miley Moore, and Mason Noise. Grimshaw chose:

Ché Chesterman

Ché George Chesterman, Jr. (born 7 December 1996)[5] is a singer-songwriter from Basildon, Essex. Prior to auditioning for The X Factor, he used to work stacking shelves at a Tesco in Langdon, Essex, but quit to pursue his singing career. Chesterman's father, Ché Sr., auditioned for series 3 of The X Factor in 2006 and made it through to boot camp. Chesterman studied music at college, which is where he realised his passion for performing. He was the lead singer of a band called Jinx, before they split and he decided to audition for the show.

With the eliminations of Seann Miley Moore in week two and Mason Noise in week four, Chesterman became Grimshaw's last remaining act in the competition. Chesterman was in the bottom two in week four alongside Anton Stephans, but was saved after only Cowell voted to send him home. He was in the bottom two again in week six alongside Lauren Murray and was sent through to the final via public vote due to the judges taking the decision to deadlock. He finished in third place in the competition. Chesterman took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Seann Miley Moore

Seann Miley Moore is originally from Sydney. He brought a one way ticket and moved to London in order to take part in the competition. When he was younger, Moore went to a British American International school in Asia. However, his family moved and he grew up in Sydney.[6] Moore originally wanted to be a tennis player and realised his singing dream after performing his father's favourite song, "Tears in Heaven" at a school acoustic night.He auditioned for many musicals and got main parts in several of them.

Seann performed "The show must go on" at his audition. Seann was in the bottom three in week two. He performed (" A song for you") in the sing-off against Mason Noise, and despite both Cowell and Fernadez-Versini praising his performance, the vote was deadlocked because Ora voted against him and Grimshaw did not want to decide since he mentored both acts. Moore was revealed as the act with the fewest number of votes and was eliminated. He came in tenth place. Although Moore was not in the top seven, he was given a place on The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Mason Noise

Mason Dominic Binnell,[7][8] (born 4 August 1993)[8] known by his stage name Mason Noise, is a part-time waiter from Birmingham.[7] Before "The X Factor" he released a few songs and videos.

Noise was a controversial act because during the six-seat challenge, after performing for his mentor Grimshaw, Noise complained that his audition was only broadcast for 47 seconds while other contestants were featured for up to 10 minutes. Simon Cowell responded by saying "You should feel lucky to be on this show. Why don't you shut up?" and called Noise an "arsehole". Noise was booed by the crowd before dropping the microphone and walking off the stage. Noise later told the Daily Mirror: "[Simon] lost control and it was uncalled for. Especially as all I was doing was saying an opinion. I think that no one has ever questioned him before and no one has questioned the format of the show. Something needs to change on that show. Listen to the kids, at the end of the day I have a lot of support on Twitter."[9] When contestant Tom Bleasby had withdrawn from the show for personal reasons, there was a spare place at judges' houses.[10] On 15 October, Grimshaw announced that Noise would replace Bleasby at judges' houses.[11] There was a negative response about this decision from the media due to Noise's behaviour at the six-chair challenge, although the remaining five candidates defended Noise, stating that his attitude had significantly improved since the six-chair challenge.

At judges' houses, Grimshaw put Noise through to the live shows. This decision was met with a mixture of cheers and boos from the audience.[12]

Noise was in the bottom three in week two, having to perform on the sing-off against Seann Miley Moore. Initially, Cowell and Fernandez-Versini voted to send him home because of his sing-off performance. However, Ora claimed that she saw something in him and voted against Moore. Their mentor, Grimshaw, did not want to decide between the two and deadlocked the vote, which guaranteed Noise another week. Noise was eliminated in week 4 after receiving the fewest votes on Saturday. He finished in seventh place. Noise took part in the 2016 X Factor Live Tour.

Girls

The "Girls" category is mentored by Rita Ora. Contestants in this category are female soloists aged 16–25. The six candidates at judges' houses were: Louisa Johnson, Monica Michael, Lauren Murray, Chloe Paige, Havva Rebke, and Kiera Weathers. Ora chose:

Louisa Johnson

Main article: Louisa Johnson

Louisa Johnson (born 11 January 1998) is an 18-year-old student from Chafford Hundred, Essex. She attended St Thomas' RC Primary School in Grays, Essex. Following the eliminations of Kiera Weathers in week two, Monica Michael in week three and Lauren Murray in week six Johnson became Ora's last act in the competition and the only girl to make the final. On the 13th December 2015 Johnson was crowned winner of series 12 with 53.9% of the final vote. Johnson took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016. Johnson's debut winner single "Forever Young" was released after she won the show. Since winning the show, Johnson has featured on a Clean Bandit track 'Tears' which got to number five in the UK.

Monica Michael

Monica Michael (born 21 October 1989) is a youth worker from North London[13] and is this series' wildcard contestant.[14] She originally auditioned for series 11 and got through to bootcamp, but failed to progress past the six-chair challenge after being eliminated by her potential mentor Cheryl Fernandez-Versini. She returned for this series and was eliminated during judges houses by judge Rita Ora but was brought back as a wildcard act as all four judges felt she should have got through.

Michael was in the bottom three in week three. She performed in the sing-off against Anton Stephans, receiving Cowell's and Grimshaw's votes to eliminate her. The result was deadlocked and she was sent home as the act with the fewest number of votes. Michael finished in seventh place, missing out on a place in The X Factor Live Tour 2016. Since leaving the show, Michael has released 'Pretty Little Sister' and 'My Angel' which she sang at her 2014 audition and judges houses in 2015, 'Pretty Little Sister' reached number 6 on a iTunes chart with 'My Angel' placing at number nine. Michael has also shared songs on SoundCloud and YouTube. She also has a website of previews of upcoming songs for her E.P. In September 2016 Michael returned to television on This Morning. She spoke about losing five stone in a year.

Lauren Murray

Lauren Murray (born 7 October 1989) is a dental receptionist from North London. She was eight years old when she started singing. However, her father died when she was eleven, she lost confidence, and did not sing again until she was sixteen. Lauren planned to release her debut single in February 2014 available on her YouTube channel.

Murray was in the bottom two in week five alongside 4th Impact and was saved by the public vote due to the judges taking the decision to deadlock. However, in week six, Murray was in the bottom two alongside Ché Chesterman where deadlock occurred once again, and public voting automatically eliminated Murray, leaving her in fourth place. Murray took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Kiera Weathers

Kiera Laikan Weathers (born 25 March 1997)[15] is a barmaid from St Helens.

Weathers was in the bottom three on week one, facing the sing-off against Alien Uncovered. Weathers was saved after her mentor Ora, Grimshaw and Cowell decided to send Alien Uncovered home. Results polls released post-series revealed that Weathers had received the fewest votes in week one and would have been sent home had Cowell taken the vote to deadlock. She was in the bottom three once again on week two, but this time received the least amount of votes and was automatically eliminated, coming in eleventh place.

Overs

The 'Overs' category is mentored by Simon Cowell. Contestants in the category are male and female soloists age 26+.. The six candidates at judges' houses were: Bupsi, Ebru, Jennifer Phillips, Kerrie-Anne Phillips, Anton Stephans, and Max Stone. Cowell chose:

Bupsi

Nicola Brown,[16] known by her stage name Bupsi, is a singer from Leeds. Before appearing on the show, she was working as a Tina Turner and Chic tribute act.

Bupsi was automatically eliminated in week one after receiving the fewest public votes, coming in 13th place.

Anton Stephans

Anton Stephans (born Stephen Johnson)[17] is a former backing vocalist from Suffolk and has worked with Tina Turner, Elton John and Sting. He also once performed with Sinitta in a West End musical.[18]

With the eliminations of Bupsi in week 1 and Max Stone on week three, Stephans became Cowell's last remaining act in the competition. He was in the bottom three on week three and had to perform in the sing-off against Monica Michael, receiving Ora's and Fernandez-Versini's votes to be eliminated. The result was deadlocked and he was spared since he had the most number of votes. The following week, he was in the bottom two alongside Ché Chesterman and was eliminated by the judges, receiving only Cowell's vote to save him and becoming the last of his acts to leave the competition. He finished in sixth place. He took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Max Stone

Max Stone is a singer and songwriter from London. He was born in Devon and moved to Sweden when he was young. He spent twelve years there before moving back to the UK. Stone was influenced by his father's records and listened to soul and Motown. He credits music for helping him get out of his "wild child" ways. He wrote his first song when he was ten years old and his biggest musical achievement was performing at the Roundhouse in Camden with Jimmy Cliff and Maxi Priest. Max left the show in week three after being in the bottom three and being automatically eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes. He finished in ninth place.

Groups

The 'Groups' category is mentored by Cheryl Fernandez-Versini. Contestants in this category are either duos or vocal harmony groups, all aged sixteen and over. The six candidates at judges' houses were: 4th Impact, Alien Uncovered, BEKLN Mile, Melody Stone, New King Order, and Reggie n Bollie. Fernandez-Versini chose:

4th Impact

Main article: 4th Impact

4th Impact (formerly 4th Power, Cercado Sisters, Gollayan Sisters and MICA) are a girl group from the Philippines consisting of Almira, Irene, Mylene and Celina Cercado, who have been singing and dancing together since 2001. Before The X Factor, they entered a family singing contest. Furthermore, they went to numerous performances before entering South Korean show Superstar K6 and reached the final eight. They are originally from Santiago in the Philippines, but live in Manila with their parents.

On the day of their week three performance, Celina collapsed during soundcheck and had to be rushed to an ambulance, but eventually recovered for the performance. Fernandez-Versini offered the group the option to abstain from performing and play the footage from their rehearsal, but the group instead went ahead with their performance and were voted by the public through to the following week. 4th Impact found themselves in the bottom two alongside Lauren Murray in week five and were sent home by public vote due to the judges taking the decision to deadlock. They finished in fifth place. They took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Alien Uncovered

Alien Uncovered (Group) (formerly Alien) are a five-piece girl group consisting of Madison, Natalie, Shae, Temple, and Yasmin "Yaz" Crotch (born 8 September 1992).[19] During their time on the show, they also had a sixth member, Frank. The band came up with their name after people kept staring at them on a train because of the way they looked, stating: "We felt like aliens... so we thought it would be a good name for the band." They have been together for over a year and are all former dancers.

Alien Uncovered were eliminated in week one after landing in the sing-off with Kiera Weathers, receiving Ora's, Grimshaw's and Cowell's votes to be sent home. Result polls released after the end of the series revealed that they would have been saved had Cowell taken the vote to deadlock. They finished in 12th place. A few days before their group performance with the other contestants at the final, Frank abruptly left the band, later claiming she was being forced to by the other members.

Reggie 'n' Bollie

Main article: Reggie 'n' Bollie

Reggie 'n' Bollie (formerly Menn on Poinnt) are a duo from Ghana consisting of Reggie Zippy[20] (born Reginald Anusson, 15 July 1984) and Bollie Babeface (born Ishmael Hamid,[21] 2 July 1986). They have been living in the UK with their families for the past five years. The pair both separately released Hiplife style music in Ghana.[22] Reggie released three songs in 2006 called "Virgin", "4 Sale" and "Adoma".[20] In 2004, Bollie also had a hit, "You May Kiss the Bride"[21] popular at weddings.[22] With the eliminations of Alien Uncovered in week one and 4th Impact in week five, Reggie 'n' Bollie became Fernandez-Versini's sole remaining act in the competition and subsequently were announced as runners-up in the final, losing out to Louisa Johnson. They took part in The X Factor Live Tour 2016.

Reggie 'n' Bollie signed to Syco Music on 20 January 2016. They released their first single "New Girl" on 13 May through Syco.[23]

References

  1. ↑ Daly, Emma (25 August 2015). "X Factor viewers will choose judges' categories for first time ever".
  2. ↑ Lee, Ben (1 September 2015). "X Factor announces the judges' categories: Who do Simon, Cheryl, Rita and Grimmy have?". Digital Spy.
  3. ↑ Freeth, Becky (26 October 2015). "Meet the 2015 X Factor finalists: A comeback king, a far out favourite who thinks he'll win and two serious girl power bands make up this year's 12 live show acts". Daily Mail. DMG Media. Retrieved 26 October 2015.
  4. ↑ Crawley, Joanna (29 October 2015). "'I am back!' Monica Michael returns to the X Factor after Girls mentor Rita Ora reveals she convinced her fellow judges to give the axed singer a Wildcard entry". Daily Mail. DMG Media. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  5. ↑ "England & Wales births 1837-2006 Transcription for Che George Chesterman, Hackney, 1996". Retrieved 8 December 2015 – via Find My Past. (subscription required (help)).
  6. ↑ Baxter-Wright, Dusty (26 October 2015). "X Factor 2015: Everything you need to know about Seann Miley Moore". sugarscape.com. Retrieved 4 December 2015.
  7. 1 2 Laws, Roz (9 November 2015). "Look at X Factor star Mason Noise before he was famous - and what's his real name?". Birmingham Mail. Retrieved 19 November 2015.
  8. 1 2 "England & Wales births 1837-2006 transcription for Mason Dominic Binnell, Birmingham, 1993". Retrieved 19 November 2015 – via Find My Past. (subscription required (help)).
  9. ↑ Harp, Justin (4 September 2015). "X Factor contestant Mason Noise reacts to being called "an arsehole" by Simon Cowell: "He lost control"". Digital Spy. Retrieved 7 September 2015.
  10. ↑ ITV, ITV (12 October 2015). "Tom Bleasby withdraws from The X Factor". ITV. ITV. Retrieved 12 October 2015.
  11. ↑ Warner, Sam (15 October 2015). "X Factor: Nick Grimshaw confirms Mason Noise will replace Tom Bleasby". Digital Spy. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
  12. ↑ Law, Nina (25 October 2015). "X Factor 2015: the final 12 revealed and five things we learned". telegraph. TelegraphEnts. telegraph. Retrieved 8 November 2015.
  13. ↑ "X Factor contestant Monica Michael insists she won't quit music no matter what happens on the show". mirror.co.uk. Daily Mirror. 15 September 2015. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
  14. ↑ Crawley, Joanna (29 October 2015). "Monica Michael returns to the X Factor". Mail Online.
  15. ↑ "England & Wales births 1837-2006 Transcription for Kiera Laikan Weathers, Knowsley, 1997". Retrieved 8 December 2015 – via Find My Past. (subscription required (help)).
  16. ↑ Percival, Ashley (5 September 2015). "'X Factor' 2015 Contestant Bupsi Gives Simon Cowell A Lapdance During Audition, While Girlband Alien Give Us Reason To Be Excited". The Huffington Post UK. Retrieved 28 October 2015.
  17. ↑ Okey, Regan (2 November 2015). "X Factor hopeful Anton Stephans is reportedly not adopted". Daily Star. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
  18. ↑ Daly, Emma (7 November 2015). "X Factor 2015 acts: Anton Stephans - first audition to Judges' Houses videos". Radio Times. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  19. ↑ Pritchard, Oliver (10 September 2015). "After wowing judges on the X Factor two Stevenage performers cruise through to boot camp". The Comet. Archant Community Media. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
  20. 1 2 "See what Reggie Zippy has been doing in UK since he left Ghana". GhanaWeb. 27 September 2015. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  21. 1 2 "Bollie". GhanaWeb. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  22. 1 2 "X Factor finalists Reggie 'N' Bollie already had big hits in Africa".
  23. ↑ Copsey, Rob (20 January 2016). "Reggie N Bollie sign to Simon Cowell's Syco label". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
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