X FACTOR MALTA: Who Made It Through And Who Was Eliminated From Today’s Auditions?
Who cares about the stormy weather when you can kick back with a bottle (or box) of wine and watch the latest episode of X Factor Malta?
Tonight we saw upwards of 15 contestants try their luck in front of the four judges, but only ten made it through to bootcamp. Here’s what went down.
Ira Losco singing Cher
In!
The singer, songwriter and X Factor judge started off the show with her lighthearted cover of Cher’s Believe, and while the judges didn’t vote – we’d give her four yeses any day.
Jean Claude Tonna – Dancing on my Own
Out!
The shy singer tried his best, but unfortunately the vocal just wasn’t quite there.
You know things aren’t going great when Ben Camille (the usually-chipper host of the show) turned to Jean Claude’s mother and asked “has he been singing long?”
Luke Chappell – Losing Faith in Humanity
In!
An old soul trapped in a young body, Luke’s voice is unique, smooth and so much fun to listen to. And when you throw his song-writing ability into the mix, you know’s he’s definitely one to look out for.
A while back Lovin Malta interviewed Luke about his music, and you can read the full piece here.
Marley Grech – Sacrifice
In!
Turning the pain he felt when he lost his 14-year-old into an inspirational message for all those listening, Marley rapped his way to success on tonight’s show.
While Ira and Howard Keith believe he has a lot of work to do when it comes to his technique, no one can deny his passion for his craft.
Nadine Fenech – She Wolf
In!
An absolute ball of energy and fun, Nadine delivered 100% on personality, and had the vocal ability to back it all up.
Ira instantly fell in love with her, as did Howard Keith and Ray, which is why the whole country was on the verge of throwing their remotes at their TV screens when Alex gave her a stone cold no.
Either way, three yeses was all she needed to get through to the next round and we’re so excited to see Nadine at bootcamp!
Elishia Semaan- Who’s Lovin You?
In!
Easily the contestant who is most comfortable in front of the camera, Elishia travelled all the way from Australia to audition for the Maltese X Factor. While her vocal performance wasn’t technically perfect the whole way through, when she was on, she was incredible.
Having placed 5th in the Australian version as part of a band, Elishia is now ready to step out alone and do things her way. And with just a little bit of coaching for control, she’s going to slay the competition.
Kaylie Magri – You Don’t Own Me
In!
She may be just 16 years old, but Kaylie’s got a lotta soul, and her song choice showed it off perfectly.
Kelsey Bellante – Brokenhearted / To Be Human
In!
Sometimes vocal perfection isn’t enough, and the judges weren’t feeling Kelsey’s first song choice because while she sang well, they wanted more grit.
Thankfully, her second song, Sia’s To Be Human was “much better”, and was enough to see her through to bootcamp.
Maya Xuereb – Masterpiece / Burning
In!
Another performer asked to change her song mid-audition, Maya worked hard to get to where she is now and thankfully her second song (this time sung in accapella) was enough for her to make it past the audition stages.
Raisa Marie Micallef – The Prayer
In!
An ambitious choice, Raisa Marie has a pretty voice with excellent control and a nice, varied range too.
While not the most memorable of songs, it’s hard to find a fault in her technique, and so she also walked away with the four yeses she was hoping for.
Tanya Bonnici – How Do I Live Without You / Valerie
Out!
Nerves got the better of Tanya, as Howard called for the track to be stopped seconds into her audition.
Changing her song to Amy Winehouse’s Valerie, her pitch was still all over the place and despite Ira helping her to find the right note the performance she gave still wasn’t enough.
Ruth Xuereb – Che Sera, Será
Out!
We don’t agree with how the judges spoke to her (really, calling someone a cake and then pretending it’s a compliment?) they weren’t wrong about her not having the vocal ability to make it to the top.
That said, Ruth was fun and sweet, so props to her for living her truth and for being, as Ira put it, a “lovely breath of fresh air”. Also, thanks for always remaining gracious, Ira.
Laura Bruno – Muddy Water
In!
A woman in total control of her voice and her image as an artist, Laura may have learnt her song earlier that day, but she did it justice, and then some!
Chris Grech – Stay
In!
Saving the most controversial moment for the end of the episode, the judges said they just didn’t feel like Chris gave enough of himself during the song… before then saying that he was through to the next round anyway anyway because they know what he’s capable of.
While we don’t agree that anyone should get through on their popularity alone (hello, isn’t the whole point of X Factor discovering new talent?) we also feel like his audition wasn’t nearly bad enough to warrant so much negativity from the judges.
So tl;dr: we’re excited to see what Chris brings to bootcamp, because that voice is sexy AF.
Make sure you tune in to the X Factor every single Sunday at 20:50 on TVM, and watch Lovin Malta’s after show, The X Banter every Monday night!
The X Factor, a Syco Entertainment owned format is globally co-produced/licensed by Fremantle Media Limited and produced locally by Mint Media Limited in collaboration with Public Broadcasting Services Limited.