How does x factor auditions work

Related Articles. Article Summary. Author Info Last Updated: January 18, Method 1. Know the deadlines and regulations. For X-factor UK, there are different dates and rules.

Make sure you meet all the requirements and complete every step before all deadlines. This is regardless of whether you're in a group or a solo act. Master a verse of a song. Or two songs, just in case the person before you sang the same one. You'll be singing it acapella without any instruments or backing track -- just you in front of an X-Factor team member and the crowd around you. Pick a song that you know won't be the th time your judge has heard it that day. If that's the case, you'll be compared to everyone else on two different levels.

The judge doesn't have to know the song. In fact, it may be better if they don't. Apply online. Before the season starts, there is an application form online at the website of your country's version of the X Factor. This is months and months in advance, so you may need to wait until the next season rolls around. In fact, that's how James Arthur auditioned. Get connected on the website, Facebook, and Twitter for announcements.

Find an open call. If you missed the online application, there's still an open call. Thousands of people do it. If one is in your area, great! Suit up and start practicing. Pick out an outfit. On the audition notice received when you fill out your form, it explicitly says to stand out from the crowd. Personalities are so large there really is no limit. Whatever matches your personality, go for it.

This show is all about spectacle. Here's what the form says: "Dress as the pop star you want to be - we are looking for the next big music sensation so make an impact. We also highly encourage everyone to bring along posters and banners to the open day - the brighter the better! You may stand out more by not trying too hard, believe it or not. Stay warmed up. If the audition is months away, don't quit. Run through your piece every other day or so until you can do it on one leg with your hands tied behind your back.

Stay vocally healthy to boot. I would suggest the smart to casual style seems to work best. So its important to not go too far over the top but its also just as important not to look too casual and like you just walked in off the street.

The song you choose to audition with really can make or break you. It might sound obvious but you need to pick a song you actually know the words too. When you're picking a song to confront the judges with, it's often best to pick a song that the judges will know. If you are unsure as to what type of songs these judges would be aware of, pick a song that has either done well in the charts or is a classic.

Bear in mind that these judges are music experts in their own right, so stick to this selection method and you shouldn't have a problem. When picking a song to sing on your audition day, it's always a good idea to pick a few potential songs, and narrow it down from there.

The reason you do this is because you can not only see which of the songs you can perform best, but because you also learn more then one song along the way. The additional songs you learned can be used as back up songs for your final chosen song, but we'll speak more about why that's important later. But first, I want to say one thing:.

When looking for a song to choose, the first thing you should do is make a list of songs that are personally close to your heart. The good thing about these type of songs is that they usually have a story behind them, and a nice, or emotionally tragic, story will always touch the heart of the judges.

As we've mentioned before, getting the judges to emphasise with you and feel like they know something about you on a personal level is a really strong tool at your disposal, so without abusing it use it to your advantage.

Otherwise, the judges will see you're playing a game and be turned off you. To add to your list you can also look through the charts of an era of your choice, and pick a song that matches your style and what you have to offer. If you really are stuck for song choice I would suggest going on a site like Amazon and listening through some popular compilations. You will get lots of ideas in no time. Also, you could just simply leave a music channel or the radio on all day long to get some ideas.

There are also list compilations of the best love songs , top songs about friendship , good songs about change and more.

So check those out and see if you can get any song ideas. Once you've got a list of these songs, you can narrow them down based on which you feel you can perform best, which one has the best story associated with it, and which one you feel will give the best show to the judges.

It's often a good idea to get other people's opinion on the matter too, so perform your top three songs in front of family and friends and see which ones they feel would be the most suitable. Don't perform to them all at the same however, you don't want their opinions affecting each others.

People tend to go with what's being said by the person with the loudest voice, so get the opinion of one or two people at a time. With this you'll get a true view of what other people think, and have more information to choose your final song from. At the end of the day though, it's down to you. Your final song should be something you feel comfortable with and be able to perform without any faults.

If you're not sure if there's any faults in the way you sing the song, you can always record yourself singing the song and listen back to hear for yourself. If you've got a video camera to do so that is ideal, as you can study your whole performance rather then just your vocals. If not, a voice record will do just fine. I suggest you go out and buy a decent quality voice recorder as they are generally cheap these days.

You are investing in your career after all, so there's no real excuse not to do this, but if you really don't want to buy one lower quality voice recorder come as standard on most modern day phones. What ever you do, make sure you analyse the recording in an unbiased manor. Don't make excuses for yourself if you hear something that doesn't sound right. Be real with yourself and if you even have the smallest doubts then change it and keep working on it. Make sure you record yourself performing all the songs and see which one you sound best singing.

Which ever one you find that to be, that should be your final audition song! On a side note, I've often seen people make one killer mistake when deciding on an audition song, and that is choosing a song that they personally made themselves. They look after you. And it was really fun to be fair. We all lived in this mansion and it was brilliant. I would sit down with the producers and my mentor Kelly Rowland and there would be three songs picked out and you could pick one.

The least of my worries was how I looked, though! The major way they benefit is by becoming famous and having a platform to launch their careers. According to contestant Lauren Murray , the contestants aren't given much money.

Speaking to The Mirror, she said: "For two months I haven't been earning anything. You're given an allowance but it's not much. It's pocket money like my Grandad would give me.

Despite the fact that performances only happen on Saturdays, contestants aren't really allowed to relax all week. There s always something required of them, every minute of every day. Some of the things they have to do include numerous photoshoots, interviews for all kinds of media, attending movie premieres, and attending meetings in order to briefed on new rules and regulations.

It's a hectic schedule and by the time any contestant gets out, they breathe a sigh of relief. Elton John, who actually appeared on the show in , described it in not-so-kind words , saying: "It is a cruise ship show, which is cruel and no way to find talent. He stated: "It is a soap opera which has nothing to do with music. It has put music back decades. However, a few legends have had kind words to say.

Paul McCartney said: "It's not a bad thing. It gives some people an opportunity, it gives them confidence, it gives them work. Philip Etemesi is an author, journalist, screenwriter and film critic based in Nairobi.

As a child, he preferred watching movies like The Goodfellas instead of Home Alone.