September 2017 marks the 14th season of the X-Factor television series. Known for discovering unknown talents such as Leon Jackson, Alexandra Burke, and Little Mix, the iconic television series has become a hit amongst younger and older viewers alike.
In spite of all the talent that has been featured on the show within the past few years, there is one competitor that we just cannot seem to get out of our heads: a young man from Liverpool named Craig Coulton.
Craig, a 22-year-old biscuit worker, appeared on the 8th season of X-Factor in 2011, charming viewers everywhere with his soulful rendition of Adele’s song “Hiding My Heart Away”.
At the beginning of his audition, Craig reveals to Louis Walsh that his parents, who were in the audience, had no idea he was to be performing that day.
“It’s a surprise for them,” he explains.
And if the looks on their faces were any indication, his parents were clearly surprised to see their son. To be fair, however, after Craig opened his mouth and began to sing on stage, we were definitely surprised too!
Craig has a charming sense of humor and an extremely quick wit, so the video is worth watching for his pre-performance chit chat alone.
The audience and judges crack up from Craig’s unintentional jokes, but when he begins to sing the first few lines of the song, the room immediately goes still.
The judges are enraptured by Craig’s impeccable vocals in combination with the emotional lyrics of the chosen song.
The emotion is palpable and distinct in their mesmerized expressions.
So, it’s really no surprise when Craig gets pushed through the competition with 4 resounding ‘YES’ votes.
When Gary tells Craig, “You’ve definitely got the recording voice,” the humble young man is shocked by the praise.
Judge Tulisa tells him, “I think you could go really far in this competition”— and much of the internet seemed to agree!
@AdamBeeso Craig Coulton of the xfactor audition was the best ha
— jay (@Cunny20) September 24, 2015
#xfactor …bloody love Craig Coulton!! #CraigToWinXfactor
— Becky ? (@MissHaymes) November 13, 2011
Craig coulton to win. End of story. #coulton #xfactor
— Stephanie (@steph_ofhearts) November 6, 2011
Craig Coulton he’s like a teddy bear with such a pretty voice !! #xfactor
— Steffi Battimelli (@steffibatti) October 8, 2011
During the course of the X-Factor competition, Craig began eating healthier and working out, and although the young biscuit factory worker ended up losing to the group Little Mix, he definitely didn’t let the loss keep him down.
Nowadays, Craig is nearly unrecognizable, looking much more stylish than the young boy in the letterman jacket whom we had all come to know and love.
According to his Twitter account, he has not given up on the music industry just yet, posting the following on August 9th, 2017:
6 years later after Xfactor and still going ❤️ can’t wait for you to hear my new music ?? pic.twitter.com/s8KcFsR2Ui
— Craig Colton (@CraigColtonUK) August 9, 2017
See Craig’s incredible, original audition below, and don’t forget to check out this link for a sample of one of his new and upcoming tracks!
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