Leona Lewis on The X Factor

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British singer Leona Lewis rose to fame when she won the third series of the British television programme The X Factor, a music talent show broadcast on ITV1, in December 2006. The show's prize was a £1 million recording contract with Syco Music, a recording company set up by Simon Cowell and now part of Sony BMG.^[1][2]

Lewis' voice was consistently highly praised by all three judges: Simon Cowell, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh. On occasions during the show, she was compared with divas such as Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and Christina Aguilera. However, Lewis was also criticised, by both the judges and in the press, in relation to her confidence. Vocal coach Mark Hudson also criticised her lack of star quality.^[3][4]

Contents 1 The X Factor 2 Auditions 3 Boot camp 4 Visit to Simon's house 5 Live shows 6 Week 1, 14 October 2006 7 Week 2, 21 October 2006 8 Week 3, 28 October 2006 9 Week 4, 4 November 2006 10 Week 5, 11 November 2006 11 Week 6, 18 November 2006 12 Week 7, 25 November 2006 13 Week 8, 2 December 2006 14 Semi-final, 9 December 2006 15 Final, 16 December 2006 16 Post-show 17 Vocal coaching and styling 18 ITV2 The Xtra Factor and The Xtra Factor: The Aftermath programmes 19 Songs performed by Leona Lewis on The X Factor 20 References

[edit] The X Factor

This music talent show is primarily concerned with identifying singing talent. It was devised by Simon Cowell as a replacement for the massively successful British television show Pop Idol (which went to to spawn American Idol amongst others), as he wanted control over the show's television and recording rights. The contestants are split into three groups: solo singers aged 16–24, solo singers aged 25 and over, and vocal groups (including duos). The show has three judges, who are assigned a group to mentor after the audition phase is over. In 2006 Simon Cowell took on the 16-24 group, Sharon Osbourne was responsible for the 25s and over, while Louis Walsh mentored the groups. In addition, American Idol judge Paula Abdul made an appearance as a guest judge at the London auditions. The show was presented by Kate Thornton.

In 2006 there were four stages to The X Factor competition:

• Stage 1: Auditions, held across the UK. Several hundred successful contestants went on to the next stage.
• Stage 2: Boot camp, held in a large country house in England. 21 acts were selected at the end of boot camp to go on to the next stage, seven from each group.
• Stage 3: Visits to judges' houses abroad, during which the seven remaining acts each group were whittled down to the final four
• Stage 4: Live shows, performed in a television studio in front of an audience. Twelve acts reached this stage, four from each group. The stage comprised ten weekly live shows: eight elimination rounds, followed by the semi-finals and then the final show, which was broadcast on 16 December 2006.

[edit] Auditions

Applications for the show closed on 9 March 2006 and auditions were held in the summer throughout the UK. Leona, who was 21 at the time, attended the London audition, on the encouragement of her boyfriend Lou al-Chamaa. At the time she was working as a PA and receptionist for a mortgage broker. Leona sang Over the Rainbow, which she was later to go on to sing in the semi-final show. Paula Abdul had joined the judging panel, and at the end of her performance all four judges applauded Leona, with Simon exclaiming "That's what it's all about." Giving their judgements, Louis commented "You've got the whole package, I think", while Simon commented "Well, it wasn't perfect, because you fell off the melody at certain points, but when it was on, it was absolutely fantastic."^[5]

Leona received a 'yes' from each of the four judges, enabling her to go through to the next round. Simon told her "That was a good audition." At the end of the audition process, Simon was awarded the 16-24 group, and so became her mentor.

Looking back at the audition after Leona had won the show, Simon spotted Leona's potential straight away: "I remember thinking at the time, we've got a potential diamond here, and what's amazing here, this diamond doesn't know how good she is. I phoned a few people up [after the audition] and said 'There's this girl, I think her name's Leona or something, I don't want to get carried away but I think we may have a fantastic young singer'", while Sharon commented, "She comes in with her little jeans and her little top on, and she's not overdone, she did brighten up the room as soon as she walked in ... with her beauty and she's got a great aura about her that lit up the room."^[6]

[edit] Boot camp

At boot camp, Leona performed a variety of songs, including I Have Nothing (which she was to sing again in the semi-final show), Hero, and Hit Me Baby One More Time in front of Simon Cowell and singer Sinitta. Cowell told her "I think you're a great singer" before putting her though to the next round.^[7]

[edit] Visit to Simon's house

At Simon's house in Miami, United States, Leona performed Without You (which she was to sing again in Week 8 of the live shows) and You Light Up My Life, again in front of Simon and Sinitta. After her performances, Cowell commented to Sinitta "I've literally got goosebumps" and "I think there's a limitation here, but when she's on it, she's fantastic." He later said, "It was a very, very good feeling, knowing I was putting in one outstandingly good singer. That made me feel good."^[8][6] In an post-show interview immediately after Leona had won, Simon admitted that after hearing Leona sing her two songs in Miami, "I turned round to Sinitta and I went "She is so in my final four'."^[9]

[edit] Live shows

There were 10 live shows in all, 8 elimination rounds, the semi-final and the final. Each week the elimination shows had a theme, and a celebrity guest who worked with the contestants in the week running up to the show. Each judge had four acts to mentor through these shows, twelve contestants or groups of contestants in all. With only the exception of one of the songs in the Week 8 show, Simon chose the songs for Leona to perform.

He was later to reflect: "I always thought every week maybe this is as good as it's ever going to get. Maybe we've peaked here. And yet, it just, every week I have to say, no matter what we gave her: Whitney, Mariah, Celine, Elton John, she was just better every single week."^[6]

[edit] Week 1, 14 October 2006

The week's theme was Motown, with the celebrity guest Lionel Richie. Leona closed the show, with a performance of I'll Be There, originally recorded by The Jackson 5. In the introductory piece, Simon Cowell said "I think she is potentially one of the best singers we've seen in this country for a long, long time. Leona 100% deserves to be in the final because that's what a competition like this needs. You need a great solo artist". Leona was overcome with emotion at the end of her first performance, which the judges received well.

Judges' comments

[edit] Week 2, 21 October 2006

The celebrity guest was Rod Stewart, and the contestants performed a selection of his songs. Leona started the show, singing The First Cut Is The Deepest. In the introductory piece, Simon Cowell said "I thought she did brilliant last week. Looked like a star, sounded like a star, but I have a shyness issue here, and I've got to get that out of the way, because she's got a great voice." Leona admitted: "It did at the end get really overwhelming and I kind of started to cry as I am quite shy, especially compared to everyone else here." "I would rather work with somebody who is shy and sweet, rather than somebody who is over-cocky and a monster backstage" was Simon's final opinion.

Rod Stewart visited Leona while she was practising in the studio and gave her hints on helping with her shyness and lack of confidence on stage. He commented "I thought Leona was tremendous."

Judges' comments

During the week, Leona suffered from a cold which affected her rehearsals.^[14]

[edit] Week 3, 28 October 2006

The week's songs were performed in a big band style, with the contestants backed by a full big band. The celebrity guest was Tony Bennett. Leona gave a barefoot performance of Summertime from the opera Porgy and Bess. She later admitted to taking her shoes off to feel more comfortable on the stage.

In the introductory piece, Simon commented "This girl is a potential star. It's very exciting to have somebody like Leona on The X Factor, I've got to tell you" while Louis said "Leona is a star in the making but only time will tell if she's diverse enough to go the whole way." Leona said she would love to be the first female to win The X Factor.

Tony Bennett advised Leona to "take off" in the song, which Simon had chosen for her. Of his choice, Simon said "She probably never thought she would sing a song from this era, but I think it's going to be on the money for her, I really really do." Leona: "I've been given a really, really big song and Simon says I need to be more confident, so tonight I'm just going to go for it and nail it, I think."

Leona gave a performance which has been called one of the best of the entire show, and she received rapturous applause from the audience. Simon gave her a standing ovation.

Judges' comments

Unsurprisingly, this praise drew an emotional response from Leona, who struggled to hold back tears as she replied to the judges' comments.^[16]

Lucy Benjamin, who was in the studio audience during Leona's performance, described it as "amazing, absolutely amazing", and revealed that while Leona was singing: "There were some technical problems during your song as well and you just carried on, I mean, so professional, so slick."^[17]

In a post-show interview immediately after Leona won the final, taking of her progress through the early stages of the show, Simon said "And then she sang Summertime, and everything changed." Asked about his favourite song that Leona sang, "I would have to say Summertime in a way because that for me was a defining moment for her and I think for everyone who was watching which was, you know, this isn't just somebody who is good, this is somebody who is potentially fantastic. So that will always have a special memory for me."^[9]

Later he was to reflect: "The first two weeks, I thought she was okay. And then it all changed week 3, when she sang Summertime. That's when she emerged as the potential winner of The X Factor. Something clicked that week, and it all changed. That was the turning point when I thought, we haven't just found a great singer for this competition, we've found a great singer full stop."^[6]

In an another interview on the Oprah Winfrey Show broadcast on 17 March 2008, Simon Cowell said that it was during this performance that he "could see her transform from a great singer into a superstar".^[18]

[edit] Week 4, 4 November 2006

The theme of this week's show was ABBA songs, with Björn Ulvaeus the celebrity guest. Leona performed Chiquitita.

In the introductory piece, Louis commented "Leona was amazing last week, but I don't think she can get any better on the show, I think she could have peaked very early." "I'm nervous about her this week with the song I've chosen, very dfferent to anything she's ever done before" Simon said.

Björn Ulvaeus advised Leona on how to make an emotional connection with the song, which Leona said she hoped would show a different side to her.

Judges' comments

Leona was unfamiliar with the song before she began the week's rehearsals which led up to the show. Vocal coach Mark Hudson said "The interesting thing about Leona is that she has an incredible voice and she probably can sing anything, and she's not aware of that. I think that this week she was very frightened about the song choice, and I can still see that there's a slight reluctance in her, thinking, "'Oh no, I'm not going to do all those vocal turns and all that' but I think now she's starting to love the song, and if you can love the song you can sing the song great."^[21]

[edit] Week 5, 11 November 2006

Contestants sang love songs in this show, and the celebrity guest was Julio Iglesias. Leona performed Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word. Along with the judges, other contestants and many of the audience, Leona was wearing a red poppy, a symbol of Remembrance Day, marking the anniversary of the end of World War I on 11 November 1918.

In the introductory piece, Simon said "We've never had a girl win The X Factor, and Leona may just change that." Louis struck a more gloomy note: "Leona has been great in the competition so far but the only way you can go from the top is down." Leona told of the closeness of her family, with her parents and brother talking about her desire for a singing career from a young age and how proud they are of her. She revisited her old workplace and met up with her ex-boss, Michael, who said "After the first week that I saw her on the actual programme, I put a job advert in the paper because I knew she wouldn't be coming back. It was the most happy time I've ever had having to advertise a new job."

After Leona's performance, Simon gave Leona a standing ovation.

Judges' comments

At the end of the voting for this show, Nikitta Angus was eliminated, making Leona the only woman left in the competition along with five male acts.^[23]

Leona was originally to have sung Christina Aguilera's Beautiful; then the choice was changed to You're Beautiful by James Blunt, before Simon finally settled on Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word, which Leona was pleased with as she felt it was the best choice. Vocal coach Mark Hudson said "I love the fact that Leona has an opinion, but I think she kind of knows what she wants, and as soon as she's comfortable, she's almost unstoppable."^[24]

[edit] Week 6, 18 November 2006

In this week's show the contestants performed a song which had been a number one hit in the UK charts. The celebrity guests were Westlife and Delta Goodrem. Leona sang Bridge over Troubled Water, and was accompanied by a gospel choir.

In the introductory piece, Simon said "There's still something which bothers me. Historically, girls do not win these competitions. I've seen this happen before." Leona practised with boy band Westlife, and told how shy she was with them as she had posters of them on her wall when she was growing up. Shane Filan said "We've done a duet with Mariah Carey in the past, but I think if Leona was singing Mariah Carey's part on that song, she'd fit in well with a duet with us. She could be up there with Marah Carey, Celine Dion, any of them." Simon also said "When you vote for somebody for Leona, it's almost like you've had a hand in her career. You've launched somebody who may do very well. Just as easily, you can snuff it out. That's what this show is all about." (This was not strictly true in Leona's case, who was told by Simon in the post-final show that she would have been given a recording contract, regardless of whether she had won or lost).

Afer the performance, Simon gave Leona a standing ovation.

Judges' comments

Leona said she was prepared to sing anything that was given to her as she loved singing so much.^[26]

In the rehearsals running up to the performance, Mark Hudson said "I love Leona because she's the one contestant that truly does has an opinion about the style that she wants to portray." Simon wanted Leona to be accompanied by a gospel choir but Leona was unconvinced this was the right choice as she preferred a simple version.^[27]

[edit] Week 7, 25 November 2006

The theme of the week was "Songs from the movies", with celebrity guests Il Divo. This week for the first time, contestants had to perform two songs each in the show. Leona performed Lady Marmalade (dressed more casually in jeans and with backing dancers) and I Will Always Love You, despite having suffered from tonsillitis during the week running up to the show.

Lady Marmalade

In the introductory piece to her performance, Leona was shown attending a film premiere and spoke of how odd it felt to have people calling out her name. Simon said "She has an aura about her, Leona, she lights up a room." Sharon said "Her voice is absolute perfection. She is a young Mariah Carey, but we have Mariah Carey. I wanna see Leona." Louis said "She's capable of giving an awful lot more. Simon is playing it just a little too safe with Leona." Leona was shown coughing and being seen by a doctor, who told her the upsetting news that she was not supposed to sing all week. She practised mentally, but as she could not rehearse she was worried about how it would affect her performance.

Judges' comments

I Will Always Love You

Leona's second performance of the night received a standing ovation from all three judges, and she went on to sing this song again in the final.

Judges' comments

Simon later said, "It was a very difficult week the week we decided to do I Will Always Love You for a number of reasons. Number one, it is probably the hardest pop song in the world to sing because how do you get better than Whitney Houston? Secondly, as luck would have it, she has tonsillitis. So we have to make a decision at the last second. 'Do you want an easier song?' 'No' 'Are you sure?' 'Yes'. The second she started singing it, I knew it was going to work, and I still stand by what I said. It is one of the best versions of that song I have ever heard."^[6]

[edit] Week 8, 2 December 2006

This week's celebrity guest was Barry Manilow, with contestants singing one of his songs, and then performing one of their own choice. First Leona sang Could It Be Magic, accompanied with backing dancers; and she then performed her choice of Without You.

Could It Be Magic

In the introductory piece to her performance, Simon addressed Leona's apparent lack of awareness of her own talent: "Week on week, no matter how good the comments are, she's still not aware how good a singer she really is, and I find that astonishing, totally astonishing." Sharon said: "Leona has a truly spectacular voice, but does she have the X Factor? We'll just have to see." Simon observed "This is normally the time when they start to change, the contestants, you start to see the slightly different side to them. I haven't seen that with Leona." Leona sang Could It Be Magic in front of Barry Manilow, who called her "the beautiful, talented Leona" and when she had finished singing, he said "I have nothing to say, except thank-you for making my song sound so beautiful." He gave her advice on connecting with the audience: "For me, it's all about feeling, it's all about making the audience feel something. Make them love you, and then break their hearts." After their meeting he said "I thought Leona was just wonderful and I was very thrilled to hear her sing Could It Be Magic so beautifully."

Judges' comments

Without You

Leona had already sung this song in the competition, at Simon's house in Miami. In the introductory piece to her second performance, Simon said "When she told me what she was gonna sing, there was part of me that thought, well maybe we can find a slightly easier song. She'll give it everything, I'm sure she will, I mean there's a massive comparison here, but she'll deal with it." Although covered by many artists, Simon was referring to the Mariah Carey version of the song.

The audience reaction to her song was striking, with the applause lasting for a long time with a chant of "Leona, Leona" starting up.

Judges' comments

Leona admitted that it had been a life-long ambition to sing Without You in front of an audience.^[33]

[edit] Semi-final, 9 December 2006

The last three contestants were Leona, Ray Quinn and Ben Mills. This week's show had no specific theme, the song chosen being "songs to get you into the final". The celebrity guest was Gloria Estefan. Leona sang I Have Nothing and Somewhere Over the Rainbow.

I Have Nothing

Leona had aleady sung I Have Nothing at Boot camp, but this was her first performance of it in front of all three judges and an audience. In the introductory piece to her performance, Sharon said that Leona was "Very special. Very, very special", while Simon said "She's been consistently for me the best vocalist across the live shows. It's very easy for everyone just to assume after the last few weeks that it's been a certainty with her, it hasn't actually, because she hasn't had the confidence. To me, this is the week she's got to give the performance of a lifetime." Louis said "Leona has one weakness. It's that she doesn't realise just how good she is."

Judges' comments

Somewhere Over the Rainbow

Leona had already sung an unaccompanied version of Somewhere Over the Rainbow in the competition, as her audition song. In the introductory piece to her performance, Leona dedicated the song to her cousin, who had died. After her performance, Simon gave Leona a standing ovation.

Judges' comments

Ben Mills was eliminated, and so Leona went through to the final of the competition.^[36]

Simon later said "She gave the performance of a lifetime. I thought it was just outstanding, absolutely outstanding, I mean, this girl wore her heart on her sleeve."^[6] Speaking of Leona's semi-final performances, vocal coach Yvie Burnett said "She's come on every single week, and although she's always been good, tonight she was great, tonight she was outstanding, the way she sung, of course she had to be in the final."^[37]

[edit] Final, 16 December 2006

Leona was competing in the final against Ray Quinn, with whom she had become a good friend. Like the semi-final, the final also had no theme. The special guests were Take That and Westlife. Leona performed four songs: I Will Always Love You, A Million Love Songs, which she performed with Take That, All By Myself and A Moment Like This, which she sang twice. Throughout the programme, Myleene Klass brought live coverage of Leona's fans in East London.

I Will Always Love You

Leona had already sung this song in the competition, on the week 7 live show. In the introductory piece to her performance, Leona visited her family in Hackney and appeared on Heart 106.2 radio station and on stage in front of an audience at the Hackney Empire theatre. After the performance, Simon gave Leona a standing ovation.

Judges' comments

A Million Love Songs

For her performance, Leona was joined part way through by Take That, the original performers of the song. The three judges gave a standing ovation. Singer Gary Barlow said that it had been "amazing" working with Leona, and "Both contestants are brilliant, but I have to say, Leona - and Simon, this is to you, mate - you've got a big responsibility because this girl is probably fifty times better than any contestant you have ever had on this show, and it's your responsibility to make her the best record you can, so please do that."

All By Myself

Judges' comments

A Moment Like This

This was Leona's final song in the competition, during which she was joined by a gospel choir. She received a standing ovation from Sharon and Simon.

Judges' comments

Leona won the show with 60% of the 8 million-plus votes,^[40] and so gave another performance of A Moment Like This which was immediately released as her first single on her new record label, Syco. She was backed by her fellow live show contestants during this performance.^[41]

[edit] Post-show

In the post-show interview on The Xtra Factor on ITV2, held shortly after Leona had been announced as the winner, Cowell revealed to Leona that music mogul Clive Davis, who had been responsible for the careers of Whitney Houston and Alicia Keys amongst others, had rung him two days earlier and wanted to sign Leona to his record label in America, J Records, regardless of whether she won or lost.^[9] Leona signed with Davis in February 2007.

At the press conference held after The Xtra Factor interview that same night, Simon Cowell announced that the single had already had a world record-breaking 50,000 downloads in 30 minutes. The CD was released for sale in shops in the UK four days later, on 20 December 2006.^[6]

[edit] Vocal coaching and styling

Throughout the show, Leona was coached vocally by Yvie Burnett and Mark Hudson, and was styled by Susan Hildebrandt.

[edit] ITV2 The Xtra Factor and The Xtra Factor: The Aftermath programmes

These weekly spin-off shows featured behind-the-scenes footage as film crews followed the contestants through the week, including rehearsals. The shows were in a more light-hearted vein than the main show, and also featured interviews, quizzes and spoof news items. During these programmes Leona revealed that her "pulling dish", food prepared to impress a would-be suitor, was a Twix pancake.

The Xtra Factor: The Winner's Story was broadcast on ITV2 on 24 December 2006. It was an hour-long programme that included new interviews with Leona, all the judges, vocal coaches and other people involved with the show.

[edit] Songs performed by Leona Lewis on The X Factor

Date	Stage	Song	Original artists	Notes
June 2006	Audition	Somewhere Over The Rainbow	Judy Garland	Leona sang this again in the semi-final
Summer 2006	Boot camp	I Have Nothing	Whitney Houston	Leona sang this again in the semi-final
	Boot camp	unidentified song	unknown
	Boot camp	Hero	Mariah Carey
	Boot camp	Hit Me Baby One More Time	Britney Spears
Summer 2006	Simon's house	Without You	Badfinger	Leona sang this again in Live show 8
	Simon's house	You Light Up My Life	Casey Cisyk
14/10/2006	Live show 1	I'll Be There	The Jackson 5
21/10/2006	Live show 2	The First Cut Is The Deepest	Cat Stevens
28/10/2006	Live show 3	Summertime	from the opera Porgy and Bess	Standing ovation from Simon
04/11/2006	Live show 4	Chiquitita	ABBA
11/11/2006	Live show 5	Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word	Elton John	Standing ovation from Simon
18/11/2006	Live show 6	Bridge over Troubled Water	Simon and Garfunkel	Standing ovation from Simon
25/11/2006	Live show 7	Lady Marmalade	Labelle	Leona suffered from tonsillitis during the week and had not been able to rehearse
	Live show 7	I Will Always Love You	Dolly Parton	Standing ovation from all three judges. Leona suffered from tonsillitis during the week and had not been able to rehearse. She sang this again in the final
02/12/2006	Live show 8	Could It Be Magic	Barry Manilow
	Live show 8	Without You	Badfinger	Leona first sang this at Simon's house
09/12/2006	Semi-final	I Have Nothing	Whitney Houston	Leona first sang this at Boot camp
	Semi-final	Somewhere Over the Rainbow	Judy Garland	Standing ovation from Simon. Leona first sang this at her audition
16/12/2006	Final	I Will Always Love You	Dolly Parton	Standing ovation from Simon. Leona first sang this in Live show 7
	Final	A Million Love Songs (sung with Take That)	Take That	Standing ovation from all three judges
	Final	All By Myself	Eric Carmen
	Final	A Moment Like This	Kelly Clarkson	Standing ovation from Simon and Sharon
	Final	A Moment Like This (winner's performance)	Kelly Clarkson

[edit] References