X Factor is a Romanian television music competition that aims to find a new music talent to become a star. The third season began airing on 23 September 2013 on Antena 1. The winner will receive a prize of €120,000 (decreased from €200,000 last season).
This season has the slogan "Muzică și suflet" ("Music and soul").
The hosts are the same as in the first and second season: Răzvan Simion and Dani Oțil, who are also known for hosting a well-known morning show on Antena 1. Dan Bittman, Delia Matache and Cheloo have returned as judges for the third season.
The registration started for the third season in June 2013. Antena 1 made changes on the list for the audition cities: Craiova was dropped, Arad and Bucharest were added.
On December 22, 2013, the season was won by Florin Ristei, mentored by Matache. Alex Mațaev, mentored also by Matache finished in second place.
Judges
Delia Matache – singer Dan Bittman – singer, television host Cheloo – rapper
Selection process
Auditions
Audition process was based on the British and American version. First up were "The Producer's Audition", where the producers chose singers to proceed to the second phase which was "The Audition before the Judging panel". The first auditions took place at Craiova, on 2 June. They then took place in Arad, on June 5 in Cluj Napoca on June 8, 2013, on June 11 in Iași, on June 14 in Constanța and concluded on June 17, 2013 in Bucharest.
+Summary of auditions City Auditions date VenueCraiova June 2, 2013Craiova UniversityArad June 5, 2013Hotel ParcCluj Napoca June 8, 2013Iulius MallIași June 11, 2013Palas MallConstanța June 14, 2013Bavaria Blu - MamaiaBucharest June 17, 2013Children's Palace
Bootcamp In a change to the usual format, the judges were allocated their categories before bootcamp. Cheloo will mentor the Groups, Matache took the Over 20s and Bittman had the Under 20s. The group Bruiaj (Eliza Bunu and Rareş Raicu) was formed in bootcamp. After the bootcamp period, there were 32 acts left.
The 32 acts who reached the Judges' Houses: Under 20s: Ana-Maria Mihăieș, Andrei Ciobanu, Alexandru Simion, Bogdan Bratiș, Florena Țicu Șandro, Rodica Tudor, Mihai Tăbăcaru, Claudiu Nergheș, Andrei Raețchi, Alexandru Ionașc, Andreea Lazăr, Ruxandra Tomulesei and Mădălina Lefter Groups: Bruiaj, Cat Girls, Chillout, Căminu' 16, Double X, Fără Titlu, November and Quattro Over 20s: Alex Mațaev, Diana Vartolomei, Dumitru Botnaru, Florin Ristei, Maria Roșculete, Larisa Vâna, Eliza Nirlu, Mihai Tăbăcaru, Miruna Diaconescu, Isabella Covrig, Paolo Lagana and Oana Muntean
Judges house The judges' home visit was the last stage of the selection process. The episode were aired on 17 November 2013. Each judge took the remaining members of their category to an overseas location, and had guests to assist them in their decisions. Cheloo was assisted by Mihaela Rădulescu, Delia was advised by Mihai Bendeac and Bittman was by Simona Gherghe. In this stage Bella from November was eliminated by her mentor and the group November remained with only two members.
The seventeen eliminated acts were: Under 20s: Andrei Ciobanu, Alexandru Simion, Rodica Tudor, Mihai Tăbăcaru, Andrei Raețchi, Alexandru Ionașc, Andreea Lazăr Groups: Chillout, Fără Titlu, Cat Girls Over 20s: Diana Vartolomei, Maria Roșculete, Larisa Vâna, Eliza Nirlu, Claudiu Nergheș, Miruna Diaconescu, Isabella Covrig
Finalists
The 15 finalists were confirmed as follows:
Key: – Winner – Runner-up – Third place
Category (mentor)Acts Under 20s (Bittman) Bogdan Bratiș Mădălina Lefter Ana-Maria Mihăieș Florena Țicu Șandro Ruxandra Tomulesei Over 20s (Matache) Dumitru Botnaru Paolo Lagana Alex Mațaev Oana Muntean Florin Ristei Groups (Cheloo) Bruiaj Căminu' 16 Double X November Quattro
Results summary Color key –Winner –Contestant was in the bottom two and had to sing again in the final showdown –Contestant received the fewest public votes and was immediately eliminated (no final showdown)
+ Weekly results per contestant Contestant Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Round 1 Round 2 Round 1 Round 2 Florin Ristei Safe Safe Bottom two Safe Safe SafeWinner Alex Mațaev Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe SafeRunner-up Mădălina Lefter Safe Bottom two Safe Safe Safe3rd Eliminated (week 5) Bogdan Bratiș Safe Safe Bottom two Safe Safe4th Eliminated (week 5) Double X Safe Safe Bottom two Safe5th Eliminated (week 4) November Safe Bottom two Safe6th Eliminated (week 4) Florena Țicu Șandro Safe Safe Bottom two Eliminated (Week 3) Oana Muntean Bottom two Bottom two Bottom two Eliminated (Week 3) Bruiaj Safe Safe Bottom two Eliminated (Week 3) Căminu' 16 Bottom two Bottom two Eliminated (Week 2) Paolo Lagana Safe Bottom two Eliminated (Week 2) Ana-Maria Mihăieș Bottom two Bottom two Eliminated (Week 2) Quattro Bottom two Eliminated (Week 1) Ruxandra Tomulesei Bottom two Eliminated (Week 1) Dumitru Botnaru Bottom two Eliminated (Week 1) Final showdown Dumitru Botnaru,Oana Muntean Ana-Maria Mihăieș,Mădălina Lefter Bruiaj,Double X No judges' vote or final showdown: public votes alone decide who is eliminated Ana-Maria Mihăieș,Ruxandra Tomulesei Oana Muntean,Paolo Lagana Oana Muntean,Florin Ristei Căminu' 16,Quattro Căminu' 16,November Florena Țicu Șandro,Bogdan Bratiș Bittman's vote to eliminateRuxandra Tomulesei Ana-Maria Mihăieș Florena Țicu Șandro Matache's vote to eliminateDumitru Botnaru Paolo Lagana Oana Muntean Cheloo's vote to eliminateQuattro Căminu' 16 Bruiaj EliminatedRuxandra Tomulesei by BittmanAna-Maria Mihăieș by Bittman Florena Țicu Șandroby Bittman NovemberPublic vote Double XPublic vote Bogdan BratișPublic voteAlex Mațaev Public voteto winDumitru Botnaru by Matache Paolo Laganaby Matache Oana Munteanby Matache Mădălina LefterPublic vote Florin RisteiPublic voteto winQuattro by ChelooCăminu' 16 by Cheloo Bruiajby Cheloo Reference(s)
Live Shows The live shows underwent a change in this season. In the first three live shows, each category will have its own final showdown, the result of which is decided solely by its mentor. The outcome of the fourth show will only rely on the public vote and will have two eliminations (one of which will happen halfway through of the show, when the voting will have been frozen). Thus, the final will have four contestants (not three as in previous seasons). Two of the finalists will be eliminated halfway through the final show, when the voting will have been frozen. The winner is still determined by the public vote.
Week 1 (24 November) Theme: Hits from last 20 years Group performance(s): Medley from "U Can't Touch This", "Gonna Make You Sweat, "MMMBop", "Wannabe", "Hung Up", "Blurred Lines", "I Gotta Feeling" Musical Guest: Paraziții ("Din colțul blocului", "Toate-s la fel", "Arde")
+ Contestants' performances on the first live show Act Order Song Result Dumitru Botnaru 1 "Livin' la Vida Loca" Bottom two Oana Muntean 2 "Unfaithful" Bottom two Florin Ristei 3 "Locked Out of Heaven" Safe Alex Mațaev 4 "Impossible" Safe Paolo Lagana 5 "Paparazzi" Safe Ana-Maria Mihăieș 6 "Memories" Bottom two Ruxandra Tomulesei 7 "Hurt" Bottom two Bogdan Bratiș 8 "This Love" Safe Mădălina Lefter 9 "Listen" Safe Florena Țicu Șandro 10 "Girl on Fire" Safe Quattro 11 "Candyman" Bottom two Căminu' 16 12 "Two Princes" Bottom two Double X 13 "Doo Wop (That Thing)" Safe November 14 "'03 Bonnie & Clyde" Safe Bruiaj 15 "Jump Around" Safe Final showdown details Dumitru Botnaru 1 "Wild Dances" Eliminated Oana Muntean 2 "If You Could See Me Now" Safe Ana-Maria Mihăieș 1 "Rolling in the Deep" Safe Ruxandra Tomulesei 2 "Euphoria" Eliminated Căminu' 16 1 "Angels" Safe Quattro 2 "Don't Let Go (Love)" Eliminated
Judges' votes to eliminate Matache: Dumitru Botnaru - gave no reason Bittman: Ruxandra Tomulesei - based on the performances Cheloo: Quattro - gave no reason
Week 2 (29 November) Theme: Romanian music Group performance(s): Medley - Romanian music: "Inima mea", "O secundă", "Amintirile", "Poezie de stradă", "Rămâi cu mine", "Dragostea din tei", "P.O.H.U.I", "Ți-am dat un inel". Musical Guest: Holograf ("Roua dimineții", "Cât de departe", "Dacă noi ne iubim")
+ Contestants' performances on the second live show Act Order Song ResultAna-Maria Mihăieș 1 "Zig-Zagga" Bottom two Florena Țicu Șandro 2 "Timpul" Safe Mădălina Lefter 3 "Inevitabil va fi bine" Bottom two Bogdan Bratiș 4 "Prăjitura cu jeleu" Safe Oana Muntean 5 "Un actor grăbit" Bottom twoPaolo Lagana 6 "Te-aștept să vii" Bottom two Florin Ristei 7 "De-ai fi tu salcie" SafeAlex Mațaev 8 "Vama Veche" Safe Bruiaj 9 "Vino la mine" Safe Căminu' 16 10 "Perfect fără tine" Bottom two November 11 "Change" Bottom two Double X 12 "Iarna pe val" Safe Final showdown details Ana-Maria Mihăieș 1 "Grenade" Eliminated Mădălina Lefter 2 "Bound to You" Safe Oana Muntean 1 "Raggamuffin" Safe Paolo Lagana 2 "Proud Mary" Eliminated Căminu' 16 1 "Sex Bomb" Eliminated November 2 "Thrift Shop" Safe
Judges' votes to eliminate Matache: Paolo Lagana - praised his attitude, but went with Oana for her voice Bittman: Ana-Maria Mihăieș - gave no reason Cheloo: Căminu' 16 - said he trusted in the other group's abilities
Week 3 (8 December) Theme: Best voices (Hits) Group performance(s): Medley from "Wake Me Up", "Call Me Maybe", "Feel This Moment" Musical Guest: Delia Matache ("Doar pentru tine", "Doi în unu", "Vino la mine"), Cocoon Kills and Andreea Lazăr ("Pisi cea obraznică"),Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Petra Pintelei ("Sleeping Sun"), Tudor Turcu ("Nu minţi")
+ Contestants' performances on the third live show Act Order Song Result Bruiaj 1 "I'll Be Missing You" Bottom two Double X 2 "In the End" Bottom two November 3 "Love the Way You Lie" Safe Florin Ristei 4 "Don't Stop Me Now" Bottom two Oana Muntean 5 "Empire State of Mind" Bottom two Alex Mațaev 6 "It's My Life" Safe Florena Țicu Șandro 7 "We Found Love" Bottom two Bogdan Bratiș 8 "Mirrors" Bottom twoMădălina Lefter 9 "Someone Like You" Safe Final showdown details Bruiaj 1 "I Need a Doctor" Eliminated Double X 2"Paradise City" Safe Oana Muntean 1 "You Know I'm No Good" Eliminated Florin Ristei 2 "I'll Make Love to You" / "End of the Road" Safe Florena Țicu Șandro 1 "Don't You Remember" EliminatedBogdan Bratiș 2 "Home" Safe
Judges' votes to eliminate Matache: Oana Muntean - based on performance Bittman: Florena Țicu Șandro - based on performance Cheloo: Bruiaj - gave no reason
Week 4: Semi-final (15 December) Theme: Celebrity Duets Group performance(s): Medley from "Wild Ones", "When Love Takes Over", "Moves like Jagger" Musical Guest: Dragoş Udilă feat. What's Up ("Scumpă domnişoară"), CRBL ("KBoom"), Lora ("De iarnă")
+ Contestants' performances on the fourth live show Act Order Song Result First Round Double X 1"România nu-i jucăria ta" (with CRBL) Safe Mădălina Lefter 2"Je t'aime" (with Luminița Anghel) Safe Alex Mațaev 3 "Just Give Me a Reason" (with Paula Seling) Safe November 4"Breathe" (with Dragoş Udilă) Eliminated Bogdan Bratiș 5 "20 de ani" (with Călin Goia) Safe Florin Ristei 6 "Somebody That I Used to Know" (with Lora) Safe Second Round Double X 1 "Sing for the Moment" Eliminated Mădălina Lefter 2 "I Have Nothing" Safe Alex Mațaev 3 "Sex on Fire" Safe Bogdan Bratiș 4 "Stop and Stare" Safe Florin Ristei 5 "Fairytale" Safe
Week 5: Final (22 December)
Round 1 Theme: Duets & Romanian Songs Group performance(s): X Factor Finalists ("Merry Christmas Everyone"), "Silent Night" Musical Guest: Zdob și Zdub ("Bunica Bate Toba"), The Colors ("Two of Us")
+ Contestants' performances on the fifth live show Act Order First song (duet) Order Second song Result Bogdan Bratiș 1 "Vreau o minune" (with Dan Bittman) 5 "Zece" Eliminated Mădălina Lefter 6 "Ochii tăi" (with Dan Bittman) 2 "De-ar fi să vii"EliminatedFlorin Ristei 3 "Stay" (with Delia) 7 "Cerul" Safe Alex Mațaev 8 "Read All About It" (with Delia) 4 "Acasă"Safe
Round 2 Theme: Final Duel Musical Guest: Zdob și Zdub ("DJ Vasile")