The X Factor was an Australian television reality music competition, based on the original UK series, to find new singing talent; the winner of which received a Sony Music Australia recording contract. The seventh season premiered on the Seven Network on 13 September 2015 and concluded on 24 November 2015. Luke Jacobz returned as the host of the show. Dannii Minogue was the only judge from the previous season who returned, while Redfoo, Ronan Keating and Natalie Bassingthwaighte were replaced by former judge Guy Sebastian, as well as new judges James Blunt and Chris Isaak. The winner was Cyrus Villanueva and his winner's single "Stone" was released after the final. He was mentored by Isaak, who won as mentor for the first time.
Open auditions in front of the show's producers took place in 13 cities between January and March 2015. The successful auditionees chosen by the producers were then invited back to the last set of auditions that took place in front of the judges and a live audience in June 2015. The next round was bootcamp, which for the first time on The X Factor Australia incorporated the five seat challenge, where each act performed in front of the judges and a live audience to earn a place on one of the five seats in their category. Following bootcamp was the super home visits round in London, where each judge reduced their five acts to three, with help from guest mentors Simon Cowell, Olly Murs and Rita Ora. For the first time on The X Factor Australia, instead of travelling to four different locations around the world, the super home visits for each category were all held together in the same location.
The live shows began on 27 September 2015. They returned to Monday and Tuesday nights as previously seen in seasons 3 and 4. This was a change of format from seasons 2, 5 and 6, in which the live shows were broadcast on Sunday and Monday nights.
Judges and host
On 25 April 2015, Ronan Keating confirmed in an interview with The Sunday Telegraph that he would not be returning for season 7 as he wanted to focus on his music career. He said, "I've had five great years working on an amazing show with a brilliant team of people. But I'm working on a new solo album and different projects so I can't make it back this year sadly." Natalie Bassingthwaighte announced her departure on her Twitter account on 29 April 2015. On 1 May 2015, Redfoo announced on his Facebook page that he would also not be returning as he wanted to focus on other projects including a new album. Dannii Minogue was the only judge from season 6 who returned.
On 3 May 2015, it was confirmed that Guy Sebastian would be returning to the judging panel, after a two-year absence, as Redfoo's replacement, while James Blunt and Chris Isaak would be replacing Keating and Bassingthwaighte. Isaak said, "It is going to be surreal to be on the show as a judge after having watched so many episodes as a fan. I know it's a show with a history of articulate, intelligent judges, and I know they wanted to change that up so they called me." Blunt previously appeared on season 6 as a guest mentor for Minogue's Groups category during the home visits round.
Selection process
Auditions Open auditions in front of the show's producers took place in 13 cities and ran from 31 January 2015 to 10 March 2015. Online auditions were also held for those who could not attend the open auditions. The auditionees chosen by the producers were then invited back to the last set of auditions that took place in front of the judges and a live studio audience. These auditions were filmed at the Qantas Credit Union Arena in Sydney on 4, 5, 6 and 7 June 2015 and Hisense Arena in Melbourne on 12, 13 and 14 June 2015.
+Open auditions City Dates Venue Sydney 31 January–2 February 2015 Sydney Cricket Ground Byron Bay 5 February 2015 Byron Entertainment Centre Brisbane 7–8 February 2015 Sofitel Brisbane Townsville 10 February 2015 Townsville Entertainment and Convention Centre Rockhampton 12 February 2015 Pilbeam Theatre Melbourne 14–16 February 2015 Moonee Valley Racing Club Perth 21–22 February 2015 Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre Geraldton 24 February 2015 Ocean Centre Hotel Adelaide 27 February 2015 AAMI Stadium Function Complex Mildura 2 March 2015 Mildura Arts Centre Albury 4 March 2015 Albury Entertainment Centre Canberra 6 March 2015 QT Canberra Newcastle 10 March 2015 Hunter Stadium
+Judges' auditions City Dates Venue Sydney 4–7 June 2015 Qantas Credit Union Arena Melbourne 12–14 June 2015 Hisense Arena
Bootcamp and five seat challenge The bootcamp round of the competition was held at the Sydney Olympic Park. Filming began on 8 July 2015. The episodes with a live audience were filmed on 10 and 11 July 2015. Before bootcamp started, the judges cut half of the 100 successful acts from auditions and only 48 acts remained (12 in each category). At the beginning of the bootcamp round, each judge found out which category they would be mentoring. Isaak was given the Boys, Blunt was given the Over 25s, Sebastian was given the Groups and Minogue was given the Girls. For the first time on The X Factor Australia, bootcamp incorporated the five seat challenge, where each act performed in front of the judges and a live audience to earn a place on one of the five seats in their category. After each performance, the mentor for that category decided if that act deserved to take a seat as one of their top five to go through to the super home visits.
If all five seats were filled for each category and a remaining act performed better than those seated, the mentor for that category had the option of swapping an act out. Contestants Panda and Chan were swapped for Cyrus Villanueva and Big T in the Boys category, Aaron Taylor and Mama Julz were swapped for Roshani Priddis and Dan Hamill in the Over 25s category, and couple duo Luke & Tannah were swapped for Lazy J & Big Guy in the Groups category. In the Girls category, Carla Wehbe and Chloe Papandrea were swapped for Maddison Milewski and Shannon Hancock. However, Hancock was then swapped for Michaela Baranov.
The 20 successful acts were: Boys: Big T, Jimmy Davis, Michael Duchesne, Andrew Lambrou, Cyrus Villanueva Girls: Michaela Baranov, Georgia Denton, Emilia Kelberg, Maddison Milewski, Mahalia Simpson Over 25s: Louise Adams, Natalie Conway, Gazele, Dan Hamill, Roshani Priddis Groups: The Fisher Boys, In Stereo, Jess & Matt, Lazy J & Big Guy, Paris Inc.
Super home visits For the first time on The X Factor Australia, instead of travelling to four different locations around the world, the super home visits for each category were all held together in the same location. The first episode of the super home visits round was filmed in London on 25 July 2015. Each act performed one song to their mentor and guest mentors. Minogue and Sebastian were assisted by Simon Cowell and Olly Murs, and Isaak and Blunt were assisted by Cowell and Rita Ora. After the performances, the judges along with their guest mentors narrowed down the acts to three each. The Girls and Groups categories travelled to Abu Dhabi to find out which of their acts made it to the live shows, while the Boys and Over 25s categories remained in London.
+Summary of home visits Judge Category Location(s) Assistant(s) Contestants eliminated Isaak Boys London Simon CowellRita Ora Michael Duchesne, Andrew Lambrou Blunt Over 25s Gazele, Roshani Priddis Minogue Girls London and Abu Dhabi Simon CowellOlly Murs Emilia Kelberg, Maddison Milewski Sebastian Groups Lazy J & Big Guy, Paris Inc.
Acts Key: – Winner – Runner-Up
ActAge(s)HometownCategory (mentor)ResultCyrus Villanueva19WollongongBoys (Isaak)WinnerLouise Adams31Mount GambierOver 25s (Blunt)Runner-UpJess & Matt24Chipping NortonGroups (Sebastian)3rd PlaceBig T22New Zealand/PerthBoys (Isaak)4th PlaceMahalia Simpson23New Zealand/Brisbane, QueenslandGirls (Minogue)5th PlaceNatalie Conway33SydneyOver 25s (Blunt)6th PlaceMichaela Baranov24Pennant HillsGirls (Minogue)7th PlaceIn Stereo14–15VariousGroups (Sebastian)8th PlaceJimmy Davis21GympieBoys (Isaak)9th PlaceGeorgia Denton14London, England/MelbourneGirls (Minogue)10th PlaceThe Fisher Boys17–23 PerthGroups (Sebastian)11th PlaceDan Hamill30Over 25s (Blunt)12th Place
Live shows
Results summary Colour key Act in Team Dannii Act in Team Guy Act in Team Chris Act in Team James
– Act in the bottom two and had to perform again in the final showdown – Act was in the bottom three but received the fewest votes and was immediately eliminated – Act received the fewest public votes and was immediately eliminated (no final showdown) + Weekly results per act Act Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4 Week 5 Week 6 Quarter-Final Semi-Final Final Monday Vote Tuesday Vote Cyrus Villanueva Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Winner Louise Adams Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe 3rd Safe Runner-Up Jess & Matt Safe Bottom Two Safe Bottom Two Safe Safe Safe Safe 3rd Eliminated(Final) Big T Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe 4th 4th Eliminated(Semi-Final) Mahalia Simpson Safe Safe Bottom Three Safe Bottom Two 5th 5th Eliminated(Quarter-Final) Natalie Conway Safe Safe Safe Safe Safe 6th Eliminated(Week 6)Michaela Baranov Safe Safe Safe Safe Bottom Two Eliminated(Week 5) In Stereo Safe Safe Safe Bottom Two Eliminated(Week 4) Jimmy Davis Safe Safe Bottom Three Eliminated(Week 3) Georgia Denton Bottom Two Safe 10th Eliminated(Week 3) The Fisher Boys Safe Bottom Two Eliminated(Week 2) Dan Hamill Bottom Two Eliminated(Week 1) Final Showdown Hamill, Denton The Fisher Boys, Jess and Matt Simpson, Davis In Stereo, Jess and Matt Simpson, Baranov Simpson, Conway Simpson, Big T Big T, Adams No final showdown/judges' vote; public votes alone decide who wins Judges voted toEliminateSend Through Blunt's vote (Over 25s) Denton The Fisher Boys Davis In Stereo Baranov Simpson Simpson Adams Isaak's vote (Boys) Hamill The Fisher Boys Simpson In Stereo Baranov Conway Simpson Big T Sebastian's vote (Groups) Hamill 1 Davis 1 Baranov Simpson Big T Adams Minogue's vote (Girls) Hamill The Fisher Boys Davis In Stereo Simpson Conway Big T Big T Eliminated Dan Hamill 3 of 4 votesMajority The Fisher Boys 3 of 3 votesMajority Georgia Denton Public Vote To Save In Stereo 3 of 3 votesMajority Michaela Baranov 3 of 4 votesMajority Natalie Conway 2 of 4 votesDeadlock Mahalia Simpson 2 of 4 votesDeadlock Big T 2 of 4 votesDeadlock Jess & Matt Public Vote To Win Louise Adams Public Vote To Win Jimmy Davis 3 of 4 votesMajority Sebastian was not required to vote as there was already a majority.
Live show details
Week 1 (27/29 September) Theme: Launch Party Group performance: "Gold Dust" Celebrity performers: Jessica Mauboy ("This Ain't Love") and Justin Bieber ("What Do You Mean?")
+ Acts' performances on the first live show Act Category (mentor) Order Song Result Georgia Denton Girls (Minogue) 1 "Hold My Hand" Bottom Two The Fisher Boys Groups (Sebastian) 2 "Can't Feel My Face" Safe Big T Boys (Isaak) 3 "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" Dan Hamill Over 25s (Blunt) 4 "This Love" Bottom Two Jimmy Davis Boys (Isaak) 5 "Long Train Runnin'" Safe Michaela Baranov Girls (Minogue) 6 "Wildest Dreams" Louise Adams Over 25s (Blunt) 7 "Somebody to Love" Jess & Matt Groups (Sebastian) 8 "Heart of Glass" Mahalia Simpson Girls (Minogue) 9 "Is You Is or Is You Ain't My Baby" In Stereo Groups (Sebastian) 10 "King" Cyrus Villanueva Boys (Isaak) 11 "Boyfriend" Natalie Conway Over 25s (Blunt) 12 "Spectrum (Say My Name)" Final showdown details Act Category (mentor) Order Song Result Dan Hamill Over 25s (Blunt) 1 "Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down" Eliminated Georgia Denton Girls (Minogue) 2 "Ave Maria" Safe
Judges' vote to eliminate Minogue: Dan Hamill – backed her own act, Georgia Denton. Blunt: Georgia Denton – backed his own act, Dan Hamill. Isaak: Dan Hamill – wanted to see what Denton was going to do next. Sebastian: Dan Hamill – thought Denton still had more to deliver.
Notes