Faraway, So Close!

Dec 4, 2015 by Rob

Reggie n Bollie are one step away from stunning vast swathes of the tv betting fraternity by making this year’s X Factor final. It is one of the great underdog stories.

There has been a constant chorus on forums of ‘novelty act, no chance whatsoever of making the final’, ‘being pimped only so they can avoid the sing-off’, ‘4th Impact are Cowell’s plan to conquer Asia. Definitely Top Group’ etc, etc.

All we know for sure is, RnB along with Louisa are the only 2 acts to have avoided the bottom 2/3 series long. And with 4th Impact waving goodbye last weekend, it is logical to conclude TPTB will want them in the final to bring the party spirit to Wembley’s SSE Arena.

Not only that but for all we know they could even be leading the vote. There were certainly one or two comments last week that suggested Louisa might not have her nose in front at this point.

It’s the semi-final tomorrow night with the 4 remaining contestants singing twice. Here are the song choices:

Ché Chesterman
Would I Lie To You? – Charles & Eddie
Love Is A Losing Game – Amy Winehouse

Lauren Murray
Runnin’ (Lose It All) – Naughty Boy Ft. Beyoncé & Arrow Benjamin
Best Of My Love – Emotions

Louisa Johnson
The Power Of Love – Frankie Goes To Hollywood
It’s A Man’s World – Christina Aguilera version

Reggie ‘N’ Bollie
Locked Away – R City Ft. Adam Levine
I Gotta Feeling / I Like To Move It – Black Eyed Peas / Reel 2 Real

It would probably suit the show ideally if we head into the final still unsure who is topping the vote, by steering RnB and Louisa away from the bottom 2 on Sunday night. It adds an extra level of intrigue. Last year it was Fleur and Ben who avoided the sing-off series-long, and there was feverish speculation over which one was leading the vote.

The year before, Nicholas McDonald and Sam Bailey; the year before that Chris Maloney and Jahmene Douglas were the sing-off dodgers who made the final, with James Arthur throwing a spanner in the works for those who base their betting on what has always happened in the past, by becoming the first winner of X Factor to have previously made a bottom 2 appearance.

Talking of James, he sang ‘The Power Of Love’ as one of his 2 semi-final songs back in 2012 on a week he bagged over 40% of the vote. This song looks a great choice for Louisa as does the Aguilera-fied version of ‘It’s A Man’s World’. As long as her larynx is up to it – with Louisa struggling last week due to ill health – she is looking a solid prospect to make the final without appearing in a sing-off.

RnB have to negotiate the mid-tempo ‘Locked Away’. Expect this to be lauded in a qualified manner – ‘kudos for showing a different side to you’ etc with maybe Cowell suggesting they are better staying in their wheelhouse of uptempo, fun tunes, and looking forward to their second song… Cue ‘I Gotta Feeling/I Like To Move It’ so they can end on a high and Cheryl can whip the crowd up into a frenzy.

Che is coming down off his bounce and after failing to do Adele’s ‘Hello’ justice, he is handed another iconic tune by Amy Winehouse. This can often prove a poisoned chalice.

‘Would I Lie To You?’ was a hit in 1992 so this is at least a bit more modern compared to the older soul tracks he has been saddled with virtually every week. It is still likely to be unfamiliar to most viewers under the age of 30 and will also require some degree of performance with Cowell previously keen to shoehorn Che as someone who can’t dance.

Lauren looks to have the trickiest selections again. It’s the chorus of Runnin’ that will probably be most testing though given the arrangements they come up with on X Factor, the whole track could prove hard to deliver well.

‘Best Of My Love’ is very much one for ladies on a hen night to all sing together in a nightclub. It’s in a similar mould to Lauren’s week 1 song ‘I’m Every Woman’. She should be in her element singing this but like Che’s choices, it is rather limiting and not the sort of thing that will win her any new fans.

Pre-show it does look like a Che vs Lauren sing-off is the most likely scenario and probably what the show will strive for. If that comes to pass, the call here would be Lauren most likely to be sent home with Che then fulfilling the Andrea Faustini role of non-threatening finalist destined for 3rd place.

Lauren going would, in theory, be a boost for Louisa too, with a degree of vote transference likely to take place.

Looking at this week’s prices, pre-show there seems little in the way of stand-out value but keep an eye on Comments for post-Saturday night thoughts and hopefully some value spotted ahead of Sunday’s results show.