The shocks continued on The X Factor UK at the weekend, as one of the remaining seven acts was eliminated from the reality-TV singing competition at the end of Saturday's show – eliminations normally happen a day later.
Described as the first Flash Vote of the series, viewers were given only 10 minutes after all the acts had performed to vote to save their favourite acts.
Mason Noise – a 21-year-old R&B singer who had received a lukewarm response from the judging panel on the night after his performance of Nick Jonas's recent hit Jealous – received the fewest public votes and was axed from the show.
Filipino girl group 4th Impact – sisters Almira, Irene, Mylene and Celina Cercado – survived after once again impressing the judges with a cover of Christina Aguilera's pop-funk track Ain't No Other Man.
“Girls, it was brilliant, professional, sassy,” Simon Cowell told them.
“Here’s my only thing which I will be doing with you now if I were your mentor: you have to bring out your individual personalities. I don’t think you have been given a song yet that showcased that. I really like you, but to go to the next level, we have to know who you are. Apart from that, I thought it was great.”
Fellow judge Nick Grimshaw said: “That was proper entertainment from start to end. Sometimes you’re so sweet, it’s like candy floss and it’s a bit too sweet. But tonight, it was meaty. Well done, girls.”
Rita Ora added: “It was tight, professional and rehearsed. Cheryl and I know how hard it is to dance and sing at the same time.”
“It is really easy to overlook the fact they’ve come from halfway around the world, from the Philippines – they miss their families,” said 4th Impact’s mentor Cheryl Fernandez-Versini.
“I have so much respect for you getting up there every week, standing there as four professionals, performing as stars.”
Also through to the next round are Che Chesterman, Anton Stephans, Lauren Murray, Louisa Johnson and Reggie ’N’ Bollie. This week’s celebrity performers were Ed Sheeran and Rudimental.
artslife@thenational.ae
