Chris Maloney has one of the most memorable The X Factor UK auditions of all time.
In 2012, he auditioned for the show by singing Bette Midler’s “The Rose” and he dedicated it to his grandfather.
It was the song that had been played at his grandpa’s funeral, so it was an emotional song that he connected with on a deeper level.
Even though he worked as a professional singer at the time, Chris was so nervous at his audition, he was near tears before he even began singing. After he finished, the waterworks were almost instant.
Since the audition his YouTube, it has gotten over 49 million views and has gone viral on an international level. Everyone has seen this audition!
When asked why he hadn’t auditioned for the show sooner, Chris admitted that had filled out the application form for the show countless times, but tore it up every year due to his nerves. That, and he feared he wouldn’t make it because other people told him he wasn’t good enough
Chris quickly became a well-known name after his audition aired. But he wasn’t a one-gig man, he had more in him.
For his next performance, he chose to sing Air Supply’s popular song, “I’m All Out of Love.”
The judges feared he wouldn’t be able to get over his nerves after he’d shown just how nervous he was during his audition.
During Bootcamp, Chris didn’t secure a spot at first but luckily was saved because he got a lifeline.
On The X Factor UK, the judges could choose a wildcard, and the wildcard that had the most public votes would become the thirteenth finalist.
Chris got to stay in the competition and for the first live week of performances, he had to pull out all the stops to try and stay in the game.
For his performance, Chris chose to sing a Mariah Carey song. He picked “Hero” and thank goodness the judges put him through to the live shows because this was great!
Chris made it to the next round and for the live shows, week 2, he chose to sing a powerful rendition of “Alone” by Heart.
Judge Nicole Scherzinger was in love with his performance and was happy to hear that Chris had taken her advice to “sing for his life.”
She loved his performance and told him he was so proud. She felt that the song choice was brilliant and she was so impressed when he finished.
Some of the other judges didn’t have that big of compliments, claiming that the song choice was “cheesy” but Nicole told him that she’d take any cheese had to give!
Despite some criticism, Chris made it to week 3 because his powerful voice was undeniable and the reason he needed to stay in the competition.
He chose to sing “Waiting for a Star to Fall” by Boy Meets Girl for the Club Classics week. And boy did he look the part!
He came out onto the stage with confidence, a silver suit, dance moves aplenty, and a flashing podium! Long gone was the man who cried during his audition.
Louis Walsh was finally impressed with Chris again, complimenting how he managed to hit every note. He felt that the song was a perfect choice for Chris and he knew exactly how to rock it on the stage.
For week 4, Chris got a little melancholy and sang “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” by Cutting Crew.
This performance just proved that Chris really is meant to sing power ballads, whether the judges think that is cheesy or not.
Judge Tulisa, however, wasn’t happy to see Chris doing “the same old thing over and over again” and got a lot of boos from the crowd when she gave Chris a harsh criticism about his performance.
Chris kicked off his week 5 live performance alone on stage and began to belt out “All By Myself” by Eric Carmen.
Nicole was impressed again, she felt he did an amazing job. Chris started to cry as she complimented him and Nicole asked if he’d felt he put everything he had into the song.
She even told him that those notes were “money notes” that made her feel like he’d sung and Eagles wings should open up behind his back.
After getting some really negative comments from the judges about his song choices, Chris hit back during week 6 with Elton John’s “I’m Still Standing.”
It was a bold song to choose, because who can do Elton besides Elton himself? But Chris really did nail it!
However, even though the judges really loved his voice, they felt that he was stuck in an era that he couldn’t get out of. At the end of the day, they wanted a singer who could produce music people would listen to on the radio today.
Even though the judges were unsure of Chris at this point, the fans were still loving him and continued to vote for him to keep him on the show.
Chris stuck with what he loves and chose to sing “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler for week 7.
The reason he chose the song was that it was Guilty Pleasures week and he really loved the song, so he couldn’t help himself from choosing it.
Chris kept the beauty alive for his beloved classics by singing “Fernando” by ABBA during week 8.
For a song that is meant to be sung by a group, Chris really handled the power of this song and was able to deliver.
His coach, Gary Barlow, was beyond proud of the hard work that Chris has been putting in every single week.
Chris proved that he doesn’t care if the judges call him a “cruise ship singer” – he was there to show off his voice and prove how much fun he can have.
For his second song of week 8, he sang “Dancing on the Ceiling” by Lionel Richie.
Louis called him “the people’s champion” but said that the performance was like being in a giant karaoke bar. That might not have been a compliment, but Chris certainly knows how to put on a good show!
For week 9, Chris finally chose a song from the last 10 years, though it was another power ballad.
He decided to sing the very fitting song for his position in the competition, he sang Josh Groban’s “You Raise Me Up.”
Honestly, it was his best performance of the entire season, even including his audition.
The judges finally gave him the credit that he was due! Louis felt that his music was going to change his life and that Christopher deserved to be on the West End.
Chris kept up with the newer songs for his second performance in week 9. He chose to go with Michael Buble’s “Haven’t Met You Yet.”
This song was much more upbeat than the Groban performance and he once again nailed it.
However, as entertaining the song was, the judges felt that the song choice was not the best for the semi-finals. They felt that Josh Groban was an excellent choice, but Michael Buble was not.
Despite the fact that his second semi-finals performance wasn’t highly praised, Chris made it to the finals and he put it all out there.
He stuck to his roots and traveled back a few decades to sing “What a Feeling” by Irene Cara. And he brought the passion and fire!
Which performance do you think was Christopher’s best from the entire season?
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For his final performance of the season, Chris teamed up with his mentor Gary to sing “Rule the World” by Take That.
It was the exact last performance we needed to see from Chris to finish out the season of The X Factor UK.
Even though he didn’t win that season, Chris holds a special place in all of our hearts.
