Quoted for the truth it is - the guy was simply amazing last night, what a stunning performance. I really hope this guy goes far in the competition, sadly I don't think he'll win as my money would be on Rebecca Ferguson.
If I were a betting man, my money would be on Matt Cardle, simply because he is the best singer of the bunch, but also his singing ability is acknowledged by all those who listen.
It must also be noted that just because you win XFactor, your stardom is not guaranteed. XFactor will (almost) guarantee that your first single goes to No.1. What happens after that is down to you. The best example is of this is Michelle McManus, who was overweight and unmarketable. She won and her first single made No.1, but after that, she vanished without a trace as record companies knew that inorder to sell records you need more than just a good voice. Steve Brookstein is another great example.
Similarly, just because you don't win does not preclude you from having a successful music career. JLS and the young lady whose name escapes me from 2 years ago, did not win, yet have been doing well in the charts recently with No.1 singles to their name.
For me, even if Cardle wins, he will have to bring something new and exciting to the table in order to have a successful music career. We have seen far too many male artists with good voices, bring nothing new to the table and as a result, vanish without a trace.
One important thing is that the artist needs to be in the media spot light as much as possible. This generates a buzz and a lot of interest. People who haven't heard of these people will then learn about them and are likely to seek out their music. All this increases the chances of their records being bought and their tours selling out.
Personally, I can't see how Cardle (or Ferguson) are going to generate the sort of publicity required for a long career.
Leona Lewis has one of the best voices I have heard in the last few years. Her problem though is that she doesnt get up to antics which end up in the newspapers. We don't see her leaving a night club, drunk with her boobs hanging out. We don't hear of her having affairs. We don't hear anything about her. For these reasons, despite her great singing voice, her songs don't seem to do as great as they could.
The best examples currently of artists making the media work for them are Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Cheryl Cole. These are 3
very clever people, who are very calculating and know exactly what they are doing.
