''X Factor'' is a Franco-Belgian television music

talent show A talent show or talent contest is an event in which participants perform the arts of singing, dancing, lip-syncing, acting, martial arts, playing an instrument, poetry, comedy or other activities to showcase skills. Many talent shows are p ...

to find new singing talent after public auditions, intermediate tests, and live shows. The first season was broadcast on Mondays, from September to December 2009, on W9 (France) and

RTL-TVI RTL-TVI is a private French-language, Belgian-based television station owned by DPG Media and Groupe Rossel, it was originally owned by the RTL Group until 31 March 2022. Until 2022, it was broadcast with a Luxembourgish licence, but the new ...

(Belgium). The second and final season was broadcast on Tuesdays, from March to June 2011, on M6 and

Series overview

Contestant in "Alain Lanty" (over the age of 25)
Contestant in "Julie Zenatti" (ages 16 to 24)
Contestant in "Marc Cerrone" (groups)
Contestant in "Henri Padovani" (groups)
Contestant in "Oliver Schultheis" (girls)
Contestant in "Christophe Willem" (over the age of 25)
Contestant in "Véronic DiCaire" (boys)

Judges' categories and their contestants

In each season, each judge is allocated a category to mentor and chooses three acts to progress to the live shows. This table shows, for each season, which category each judge was allocated and which acts he or she put through to the live shows. Key: : – Winning judge/category. Winners are in bold, eliminated contestants in small font.

Season 1 (2009)

The first season of the show aired from September to December 2009 and the winner was 26-year-old

Sébastien Agius Sébastien Agius or just Sébastien or Seva (born 2 March 1983, in Nice, France) is a French singer and songwriter, and winner of the inaugural season of the French ''X Factor'' series in 2009. Career In 2003, he tried unsuccessfully for the fi ...

from the "Over 25" category. The judges were

Alain Lanty Alain Lanty (born 28 November 1961 in Auray, France) is a French singer, composer and pianist. He has composed songs for a great number of French artists including Renaud, Florent Pagny, Marc Lavoine, Dani, Régine, Maurane, Hélène Ségara, ...

Julie Zenatti Julie Zenatti (born 5 February 1981) is a French singer. She first played the role of Fleur-de-Lys and later Esmeralda on stage for the musical ''Notre-Dame de Paris''. Personal life Zenatti was born in 1981 in Paris. She is of Algerian, Ital ...

and

Marc Cerrone Marc CerroneDaryl Easlea, "Supernature Boy", ''Record Collector'', #502, February 2020, pp.60-63 (; born 24 May 1952) is a French disco drummer, composer, record producer and creator of concerts. Cerrone is a producer of 1970s and 1980s disco s ...

Contestants

The top 9 acts were confirmed as follows: Key: : – Winner : – Runner up

Results summary

Color key:

Ratings

Season 2 (2011)

Based on a generally good public reception, and after some speculations, ''X Factor'' came back for a second season in March 2011 on M6 (mother TV channel of W9), in place of ''Nouvelle Star'', the French ''Pop Idol'', programmed on M6 since 7 years after audience figures deteriorated for ''Star''''Nouvelle Star'' laisse bien sa place à ''X Factor'' sur M6 !
/ref> Frédéric de Vincelles, general manager of W9, declared that even though all targeted goals were not attained in season 1, the program had still realised some respectable audience figures for the chain, making it the biggest grossing program for the network in 2009.

Differences with first season

* First season was aired on a small TV channel with limited means. This is not the case with the second season, as the program tries to emulate the successful British edition. * For this second season, M6 assigned 4 artists to be part of the jury:

Christophe Willem Christophe Frédéric Durier (; born 3 August 1983), better known by his stage name Christophe Willem (), is a French singer and the winner of the fourth edition of ''Nouvelle Star'' (French version of ''Pop Idol'') in 2006. Early life Willem ...

Véronic Dicaire Véronic DiCaire (born in Embrun, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian Franco-Ontarian singer and impressionist.

, Olivier Schultheis and

Henry Padovani Henry (or Henri) Padovani (born 14 October 1952) is a French musician noted for being the original guitarist of English rock band the Police. He was a member of the band from January 1977 to August 1977 and was replaced by Andy Summers, who ha ...

. All judges are new and replace the old set of three judges

and

. * Auditions were held in major French theatres, in public. * The bootcamp lasted for days and included 3 events: vocal duels, choreography and solos on orchestra-band. * Two to three French or international popstars are invited each week during liveshows . * During shows, a second program, named "F@n Factor: Le Prime", is broadcast on the internet to show the backstage and see preparation of candidates and their reactions after singing. So, there isn't an after-show as ''Xtra Factor''. * Every day, a short program, named "F@n Factor: Le Mag", is broadcast on the internet to show repetitions of candidates with their coaches, and their daily activities.

Judges and hosts

For this second season, judges of the first season are not renewed. Also, for the first time, there are four judges (so four categories in competition) : *

(27 years old) – French singer and songwriter. He sang in a gospel choir and won the fourth edition of ''

Nouvelle Star ''Nouvelle Star'' (; also known as '' À la Recherche de la Nouvelle Star'' for the first season) is a French television series based on the popular Pop Idol programme produced by FremantleMedia. It was broadcast by M6 in seasons 1–8 befor ...

'' (French version of ''

Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and pa ...

'') in 2006. He sold over 2 million albums and was nominated several times in

NRJ Music Awards An NRJ Music Award (commonly abbreviated as an NMA) is an award presented by the French radio station NRJ to honor the best in the French and worldwide music industry. The awards ceremony, created in 2000 by NRJ in partnership with the televisi ...

and Victoires de la Musique. * Olivier Schultheis (45 years old) – French conductor, musician and songwriter. He discovered

Christophe Maé Christophe Martichon (; born 16 October 1975), better known by his stage name Christophe Maé (), is a French pop singer. Career Maé learned to play the violin at age five, and later began playing the guitar and harmonica at age 16 after he wa ...

and composed for

Hélène Ségara Hélène Ségara (, born ''Hélène Aurore Alice Rizzo''; 26 February 1971), is a French singer of Armenian and Italian descent, who came to prominence playing the role of Esmeralda in the French musical ''Notre Dame de Paris''. She has sold o ...

, Thierry Amiel,

and for musicals ( Le Roi Soleil, Mozart l'opéra rock...) and wrote soundtracks for films. He was also a producer of ''

'' (French version of ''Pop Idol''). *

Véronic DiCaire Véronic DiCaire (born in Embrun, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian Franco-Ontarian singer and impressionist.

(34 years old) - Franco-Ontarian singer and imitator. She was discovered by

Céline Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion (born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Referred to as the " Queen of Power Ballads", Dion's powerful, technically skilled vocals and commercially successful works have had a significant impact on popular musi ...

and

René Angélil René Angélil (; – ) was a Canadian musical producer, talent manager and singer. He was the husband and manager of singer Celine Dion. Early life Angélil was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, to a father of Syrian descent and a mother of ...

and was renowned for her imitations of many voices including Céline Dion,

Tina Turner Tina Turner (born Anna Mae Bullock; November 26, 1939 – May 24, 2023) was a singer, songwriter, actress, and author. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Rock 'n' Roll", her vocal prowess, raspy voice, and electrifyin ...

Lynda Lemay Lynda Lemay (born 25 July 1966) is a Canadian francophone singer-songwriter. Through her mother she is a descendant of Zacharie Cloutier. After winning regional awards in 1989 she went to France and regularly tours in Quebec and France, includi ...

Lara Fabian Lara Sophie Katy Crokaert (; born 9 January 1970), known professionally as Lara Fabian (, , ), is a Belgian, Italian and Canadian singer and songwriter. She claims to have sold over 20 million records worldwide and to be one of the List of best ...

Isabelle Boulay Isabelle Boulay, (; born 6 July 1972) is a Canadian singer. Biography Born in Sainte-Félicité, Quebec, where her parents owned a restaurant, Boulay moved to the nearby city of Matane at the start of her adolescence, and studied literature a ...

Christina Aguilera Christina María Aguilera ( , ; born December 18, 1980) is an American singer-songwriter, actress and television personality. Recognized as Cultural impact of Christina Aguilera, an influential figure in music and having received Public imag ...

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper ( ; born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Known for her distinctive image, featuring a variety of hair colors and eccentric clothing, and for her powerful four-octave vocal range;Jerome, ...

Vanessa Paradis Vanessa Chantal Paradis (; born 22 December 1972) is a French singer, model and actress. Paradis became a star at the age of 14 with the international success of her single " Joe le taxi" (1987). At age 18, she was awarded France's highest ho ...

and others. She released two albums (with her real performing voice) in 2002 and 2005. *

(58 years old) –

Corsica Corsica ( , , ; ; ) is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the Regions of France, 18 regions of France. It is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fourth-largest island in the Mediterranean and lies southeast of the Metro ...

n songwriter, guitarist and manager. He is the founding member of

The Police The Police were an English rock band formed in London in 1977. Within a few months of their first gig, the line-up settled as Sting (lead vocals, bass guitar, primary songwriter), Andy Summers (guitar) and Stewart Copeland (drums, percussi ...

with

Stewart Copeland Stewart Armstrong Copeland (born July 16, 1952) is an American musician and composer. He is best known for his work as the drummer of the British rock band the Police from 1977 to 1986, and again from 2007 to 2008. Before playing with the Polic ...

but

Sting Stimulator of interferon genes (STING), also known as transmembrane protein 173 (TMEM173) and MPYS/MITA/ERIS is a regulator protein that in humans is encoded by the STING1 gene. STING plays an important role in innate immunity. STING induces typ ...

fired him in favour of

Andy Summers Andrew James Summers (born 31 December 1942) is an English guitarist best known as a member of the rock band the Police. Prior to joining the Police, Summers had been a member of several bands during the 1960s, including Zoot Money's Big Roll ...

. He was the director of

IRS Records I.R.S. Records was a major American record label founded by Miles Copeland III and Jay Boberg in 1979. I.R.S. produced some of the most popular bands of the 1980s, and was particularly known for issuing records by college rock, new wave music, n ...

, where he promoted many groups such as

R.E.M. R.E.M. was an American alternative rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by drummer Bill Berry, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, and lead vocalist Michael Stipe, who were students at the University of Georgia. One of the fir ...

The Fleshtones The Fleshtones are an American garage rock band from Queens, New York. They are the only band that debuted at CBGB in 1976 that has not had an inactive year. History 1976–1979 The Fleshtones were formed in 1976 in Whitestone, New York, ...

The Cramps The Cramps were an American rock band formed in 1976 and active until 2009. Their lineup rotated frequently during their existence, with the husband-and-wife duo of singer Lux Interior and guitarist Poison Ivy the only ever-present members. T ...

, and

The Bangles The Bangles are an American all-female band, all-female pop rock band formed in Los Angeles, in 1981. They are known for hit singles during the 1980s that made them one of the most successful pop rock groups of the decade. The band’s biggest ...

. He was also the manager of

Zucchero Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), known professionally as Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his primary school teacher used to ...

and

I Muvrini I Muvrini is a Corsican folk music group, who sing traditional Corsican music in their native Corsican language. History The group was formed in the early 1980s by the brothers Jean-François Bernardini and Alain Bernardini both born in the vil ...

. To present the show, M6 selected

Sandrine Corman Sandrine Corman (born 12 April 1980 in Verviers, Belgium) is a Belgian tv host and beauty pageant titleholder. Pageants Corman was Miss Belgium 1997 at the age of 17. She later stated that she was not interested in the contest and that her moth ...

for the liveshows and early stages and

Jérôme Anthony Jérôme Finkelstejn better known as Jérôme Anthony is a French television presenter. Born in Nancy, France, Nancy, France on 11 November 1968, he has presented many entertainment and reality shows on RTL9, TF1, France 2, Disney Channel France, ...

for ''F@n Factor'' and early stages.

Chronology of the early stages

* Preselections: ** 2 November 2010 in

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one million Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

and

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

** 4 November 2010 in

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

Lille Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...

and

Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, , ; or simply ; ) is a city and Communes of France, commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regions of France, region, with a population of 147,284 (2020). Its metropolitan area () had 504,157 inhabitants at the 2018 ...

** 6 November 2010 in

Montpellier Montpellier (; ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of France, department of ...

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

and

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

(

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

) ** 8 November 2010 in

Toulouse Toulouse (, ; ; ) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Haute-Garonne department and of the Occitania (administrative region), Occitania region. The city is on the banks of the Garonne, River Garonne, from ...

** 9–10 November 2010 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

* Auditions: * 'Bootcamp' : 25-26-27–28 January 2011 in

Palais des Sports (Paris) Palais des Sports (French: Palace of Sports) is a generic name of comprehensive indoors sports venue, mostly in the French-speaking world, including: ; France: * Palais des Sports de Beaulieu, Nantes * Palais des sports Ghani-Yalouz, Besançon * Pa ...

Judges' Houses

Top 24 acts were chosen with six in each of the four category. The judges added a 25th contestant in the Groups category making the contestants for the Groups seven instead of six. The newly created group was named "Seconde Nature" and included 5 candidates who had applied for the "Boys" category but had failed to qualify individually to the Top 24, but were deemed talented enough to be given a second chance by performing as part of a band in the Groups category.

Contestants

Key: : – Winner : – Runner-Up

Results summary

Colour key:

Ratings

References

External links

X Factor website (series 1)

X Factor website (series 2)
{{The X Factor series 2009 French television series debuts French reality television series French music television series The X Factor Television series by Fremantle (company) 2011 French television series endings French television series based on British television series RTL-TVI original programming