‘The X Factor Australia’ Final 3 Grand Performances + One Direction Guest Star [VIDEOS]
“The X Factor Australia” top 3 finalists Jae Waetford, Taylor Henderson, and Dami Im have all given their best, and it’s up to the Australian people to decide who’s got the x factor. Plus, currently the most famous boyband in the world, One Direction, has performed their “Best Song Ever” on Sunday night.
Before anything else, the One Direction boys – Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, and Louis Tomlinson – got the teenage girls in the audience singing with their single “Best Song Ever.”
The tween heartthrobs aren’t new to the X Factor stage. They have placed third in the show’s UK version in 2010, becoming even more successful than the season winner Matt Cardle. Their guest appearance on Sunday’s show also reunited them with Dannii Minogue, who was also a judge and mentor on the UK series.
Watch their X Factor Australia invasion here (keep an eye on Harry almost getting captured by his eager fans at mark 3:48)
After judge Natalie Bassingthwaighte’s last surviving act Third D3gree got the axe last week, and Redfoo’s last act Jiordan Tolli finished fifth place the week before that, only Ronan Keating and Dannii have their acts in the show.
Ronan is mentoring both Jae and Taylor, while Dannii is trying so hard to help Dami nab the title.
And all three finalists have nailed their performances, with the judges giving them standing ovations.
Jae, Taylor, and Dami had prepared three songs each, composing of their audition song, which they sang to impress the judges during their audition; their last shot song, which was chosen by their mentor; and their winner’s single, which they would release if they won “X Factor.”
Jai’s Winner Single “Your Eyes”
The 14-year-old hopeful was given a very catchy tune, with Natalie expressing what many people thought about Jai’s Winner Single, “Your Eyes.”
“I wanna hear that on the radio. What a great song! Remarkable!
Ronan also remarked that the “song can walk on the radio,” referring to the song’s catchy quality.
Taylor’s Winner Single “Borrow My Heart”
“You are the most rounded artist we have,” Taylor’s mentor, Ronan, told him after he sang the original song “Borrow My Heart.”
Natalie and Dannii were also both impressed with the Taylor’s song and his performance, with both telling him he’s “amazing.”
Dami Im’s Winner’s Single “Alive”
“That’s my new song right after I wake up in the morning,” Redfoo said of Dami’s Winner Single song, “Alive,” while Ronan likened Dami’s star power to that of international superstars Lady Gaga and Katy Perry’s.
But perhaps the most winning performance of the night was Dami’s cover of “And I’m Telling You (I’m Not Going)” by Jennifer Hudson. The judges not only gave her a standing ovation, they cheered while standing on their desk for her.
“That’s the best thing I’ve ever seen in my life!” Foo passionately declared before shutting up.
“My boys have worked so hard. And one thing that we’ve worked against is you. Every single week you’ve been the thing... ‘we’ve got to beat Dami’ every single week,” Ronan admitted, speaking on behalf of Jai and Taylor.
“Dami, you’re a star. There are just no words to describe how incredible you are. You’re just amazing,” Natalie added.
“You’re absolutely divine. And I really truly think you’re world class, baby,” her mentor Dannii enthused.
Even host Luke Jacobz agreed that that’s the biggest reaction they’ve got on the show.
Not all performances were perfect, though.
Taylor’s rendition of Damien Rice’s “The Blower’s Daughter” didn’t exactly impressed the judges, saying that his cover performance was flawed. However, they praised him for his soulful singing.
“I feel for you,” Natalie started, prompting Taylor to feel that he made a mistake on his performance. “[However] they imperfection in that performance made it perfect for me.”
As if the judges were looking to praise the 20-year-old Victoria native rather than focus on his imperfect performance, they just remarked on how hardworking he was in the show.
On Monday, the new X Factor Australia winner will be crowned. While bookers have bet that 24-year-old Dami will be beating her younger male competitors, nothing is set in stone yet.
Guy Sebastian and Katy Perry are expected to thrill fans on stage as celebrity performers of the night, while Fall Out Boy will be helping the top three finalists with a group performance.
Watch the summary of each contestant’s performances (video courtesy of YouTube user J1MZO7):