The X-Factor Auditions Week 2 - The Round up

(A little late, but so what?!) The madness continues! In the words of Monsieur Cowell, "Embrace the madness!" The second instalment never failed to disappoint and provided us with many surprises as more wannabes auditioned across the country for that life-changing million-pound record deal. It has become somewhat clear that the X-Factor is not what it used to be in terms of the auditionees. It seems to me that they have a clear idea of what direction they want to go in, It seems that this year will finally see the demise of the typical X-Factor winner who is just stripped down and made into a puppet and someone with flair, individuality and creativity. We have singers (obviously), rappers and and songwriters - people who know what kind of artist they want to be and have their own creative visions. people who want to be genuine artists and not just manufactured. Time for a recap methinks!

The 'WTF?!'...

The biggest surprise of the evening had to be Johnny who initially looked like he had been taken styling tips from Tim Westwood. Seriously, this audition was the epitome of the Susan Boyle syndrome. Everyone was cynical about him, until he started singing Etta James' At Last in his own  unique way. Rather surreal when you watch it, but it is definitely a must see! He seemed like a genuinely pleasant and sweet guy though and had a lot of likeability, which will no doubt work in his favour throughout the competition. He also reminded me of a male Lady Gaga because of his eccentricity, so there is a possibility that he could make it in the real world. Whilst this song is a very popular choice amongst so many auditionees, no  one had ever had heard a rendition of it sung by a man. Not too sure whether he'd go all the way, but we shall wait and see...

The Smooth-as-chocolate-soulful-sweetheart-but-also-very-scary...

Derry aka Kelly Rowland lover melted hearts on stage with an Usher song, but also came across as slightly weird as he kept obsessing over Kelly. He undoubtedly had a smooth and soulful voice and has that charm and I also think there is a possibility he could sell records. There's no denying that he is exceptionally cute as well. Girls all over the world will adore him. Move over Usher, Ne-yo and Jason Derulo? We shall see...

The Ker-azy Bad...

Watching these people almost made my poor eyes and ears bleed. Seriously, that's how horrendous they sounded. I literally could not stop cringing and wanted it to end. This awful act came in the form of married couple (altogether now, Awwww....) known as The Duo, who absolutely murdered Beyonce's smash hit, If I Were a Boy, sounding nothing less than a pair of chipmunks, singing completely out of tune. It was even worse that they were singing it in front of Kelly, Beyonce's former bandmate, who was cringing at the panel. that poor woman - I feel your pain, honey. Let's hope Beyonce never gets round to witnessing that car crash of an audition. Sorry to disappoint you, lovelies, but singing just isn't your forte. (Was funny though! But NO!)

The 'completely tore up the stage'...

After many horrific groups had auditioned and our hopes were beginning to be dashed, things quickly began to turn around. JLS, The Wanted, Take That, One Direction - move over! There's a new boyband man band in town out to steal your pretty little platinum crown in the form of The Keys, who demonstrated flair and originality by giving a very powerful and exciting performance which blew both the audience and the judges away. The competition then began to become very exciting. Loved it!!!! Another stand-out act from Saturday's show was Misha who absolutely brought the house down and impressed the judges and audience with her mind-blowing rendition of R.E.S.P.E.C.T along with some soulful vibes and rapping. After telling her story about how she never knew her parents and that she was raised by her aunt added to the suspense and had me hoping that she would be brilliant, as we know that the judges are becoming more and more immune to sob stories. But OMFG! She 100% had the talent to accompany her powerful, heart-rendering and inspiring story and was also very likeable as well. This girl completely smashed it!!!! These two acts are definitely the ones to watch! Cannot. Wait. Another huge surprise of the evening came in the form of Craig, who literally risked it for a chocolate biscuit (terrible joke) as his parents, who were sat in the audience, had no idea that he had taken a day off work in the biscuit factory to audition for the X Factor, and boy did it go down a storm! He had a soulful voice and sounded (and arguably even looked like) a male version of Adele. He completely owned the performance and had great stage presence. His parents must have been sooo proud. He'll definitely do well in the real world. Watch out, Adele! Our Craig here is about to steal your multi-platinum crown!

Things are really starting to heat up! Only two weeks in and I'm already loving it! Thoughts???