Tim: On Sunday, the wonderful Ben Haenow was crowned winner of The X Factor 2014, so shall we write about him before he fades into obscurity?
Tom: I still think his song should have been “Haenow, Haenow, don’t dream it’s over.”
Tim: A cover of OneRepublic’s track that never actually got released in Britain.
Tom: It’s an interesting choice: I wonder how many of the audience have ever heard the original? ‘Cos I haven’t: and it doesn’t seem too much like a Big Winner’s Single.
Tim: Perhaps not, but I think it fits his voice very well – slightly better, as I see it, than that of Fleur East, runner up. Even if she did sing it slightly better, he has the croakiness and apparent desperation there to emphasise that he NEEDS whatever the something it is that you got.
Tom: Mm. I’m not sure how healthy that is for your voice, but it clearly got him the votes. Incidentally, the first related video was him singing “Man in the Mirror“, which sounds exactly like the kind of song that should be his winner’s single.
Tim: Yes, you could be right there. This is, though, I suppose, an excellent demonstration of how songs fit people and how it may be better to have different songs for different winners. But I’m not ITV so I don’t get a say in this.
Tom: Well, you do, but it’s limited to five free votes on the app before they freeze the count, and five more after.
Tim: Well that it true at least, but all I really need to say is that I like this track, I like this winner, and my only regret about this year’s X Factor is that Only The Young got kicked out so early. Because they could be good.