When Ella Henderson competed in the 9th season of X-Factor UK at only 16 years old, she was one of the youngest contestants.
The Tetney, Lincolnshire-native took the stage in a flowered dress and white sneakers to perform an original song called “Missed”. In a pre-recorded interview, Ella, who had been writing songs for three years at that point, credited her late grandfather for her interest in music.
“My grandad Bill, he was the reason why I’m into singing,” she explained.
“I used to sing to him all the time and put on little shows for him in the living room all the time.”
“It was something that just really really made me happy and put a smile on my face.”
The teen’s stunning performance of “Missed” incited people to start comparing her to English singer-songwriter Adele.
“Your song writing is so clever,” Mel B. told Ella. “It made me go into my own world and think, ‘Oh my God, I felt like that at some point’— and that’s hard to do as a songwriter.”
“It’s hard to believe you’re only sixteen,” Louis Walsh added.
“That was a brilliant performance… You’re a class act.”
But Ella wasn’t done showing the world her skills. For her second audition, the teenager chose to sing “Believe” by Cher— which immediately drew looks of uncertainty from the judges.
“Today, I wanted to challenge myself a bit more and pick a song that was completely out-of-the-box and out of my comfort zone,” she explained in a pre-recorded interview.
“I keep going through it in my head and trying to put my own twist on it because it’s so different than what I’d normally do… and I really hope that they’ll like it.”
Ella’s version of “Believe” is softer than the electronic version made famous by Cher. An acoustic piano forms the melody.
Although the lyrics of the song remain unchanged, Ella’s rendition is completely slowed down, with the girl using the vibrato and warble of her voice to create emphasis and emotion. As opposed to the power in Cher’s song, Ella puts her entire soul into the performance, making it reminiscent of the heartbreak one feels during a tough relationship.
“Do you believe in life after love?” she croons passionately.
Nicole Scherzinger seems wowed by the teenager’s talent. At one point during the performance, she even raises her hands in disbelief.
As the girl continues the powerful performance, the audience stands to their feet cheering.
By the end of the song, Nicole is in tears.
“I’ve gotta say,” Gary Barlow tells Ella afterward, “If I was to have a Top 5 of the most annoying songs of all time, that would come close to the top for me. But today, I would pay lots of money to hear that version again. That was amazing.”
“We can’t touch her,” Nicole says after the teen has left the stage.
“We just have to be in awe of her.”
Sixteen-year-old Ella went on to place 6th in the competition, becoming a fan favorite and drawing protests upon her elimination. Afterward, she was signed to Simon’s label Syco, where she released her hit single “Ghosts“, selling more than 2M copies. Despite Ella’s success, however, her time on the X-Factor UK were the events that marked her ascent into superstardom.
Ella’s soulful rendition of “Believe” has been viewed more than 56 million times, even drawing praise from Cher herself.
Hear it for yourself below!
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