Dalton Harris (born 29 December 1993) is a Jamaican singer. In 2010, he won ''Digicel Rising Star'', and subsequently signed with VP Records. In 2018, he won the final season of ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

'' in the United Kingdom.

Early and personal life

Harris was born in

Clarendon, Jamaica Clarendon is a parish in Jamaica. It is located on the south of the island, roughly halfway between the island's eastern and western ends. Located in the county of Middlesex, it is bordered by Manchester on the west, Saint Catherine in the eas ...

, before moving to Kingston to pursue his music career. Harris recalled living a difficult life growing up in Jamaica with a large family with 22 siblings, being poor, and living on his own since the age of 15. He also talked about being physically and mentally abused in his early life. Harris attended Kingston College, where he passed six CSEC subjects. In October 2020, Harris stated that he is

pansexual , meaning "all" , definition = Sexual or romantic attraction to people regardless of gender , classification = Sexual identity , parent = Bisexuality , synonyms = , associated_terms = Polysexual, queer, heterofl ...

Career

In 2010, Harris became the youngest winner of the Jamaican singing competition ''Digicel Rising Stars'' where he won a cash prize of $1.5 million JMD. After his win, he began releasing music in Jamaica. He then traveled across the States for five years to widen his scope. He released many tracks like "I'm Numb", "Watch Over Me" and "That Wonderful Sound" in 2015, "All I Need", "Whisper in the Wind", "Unfaithful Chronicles" and "Dem Kinda Woman" in 2016 and "Perilous Time" in 2017. In 2018, he released the joint album ''Unintentional Astronaut'' with Mike Needler. In 2018, Harris entered season 15 of ''

'' in the United Kingdom. He auditioned for the series with "

Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" is a song written by English musician Elton John and songwriter Bernie Taupin. It was recorded by Elton John and released in 1976, both as a single and as part of the ''Blue Moves'' album. It was John's seco ...

" by

Elton John Sir Elton Hercules John (born Reginald Kenneth Dwight; 25 March 1947) is a British singer, pianist and composer. Commonly nicknamed the "Rocket Man" after his 1972 hit single of the same name, John has led a commercially successful career a ...

. He received four yeses from the four judges

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...

Ayda Field Ayda Field (born Ayda Sabahat Evecan, May 17, 1979) is a Turkish-American model and actress. She is best known for being a regular panellist on British television show ''Loose Women'', a judge on the British ''The X Factor'', alongside her husba ...

Louis Tomlinson Louis William Tomlinson (; born Louis Troy Austin; 24 December 1991) is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame as a member of the boy band One Direction. Tomlinson began his career appearing in television dramas before he auditioned ...

and

Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of ''The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on t ...

. Competing in the category of "Boys", he was coached by Tomlinson. Owing the success and increasing popularity of the Jamaican act, the British ''X Factor'' was broadcast in Jamaica after the local Television Jamaica (TVJ) bought the rights of broadcasting the programme live in Jamaica. On the six-chair challenge, Harris was the last contestant to perform, singing " Purple Rain" by

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

. He performed " I'm Feeling Good" in the semi-final and "

Clown A clown is a person who performs comedy and arts in a state of open-mindedness using physical comedy, typically while wearing distinct makeup or costuming and reversing folkway-norms. History The most ancient clowns have been found in ...

" from

Emeli Sandé Adele Emily Sandé, ( ; born 10 March 1987), known professionally as Emeli Sandé, is a Scottish singer and songwriter. Born in Sunderland, Tyne and Wear, and raised in Alford, Aberdeenshire, Scotland, by an English mother and a Zambian fathe ...

. Harris was consistently the favorite to win the show. He reached the final of the contest on 1 December 2018 alongside Anthony Russell and

Scarlett Lee Scarlett Lee (born 20 September 1997) is an English singer. In 2018, she finished as runner-up in the fifteenth series of ''The X Factor''. She also competed in the fourteenth series and reached the six chair challenge, but failed to proceed f ...

. In the final, he sang "

A Song for You "A Song for You" is a song written and originally recorded by rock singer and pianist Leon Russell for his first solo album '' Leon Russell'', which was released in 1970 on Shelter Records. A slow, pained plea for forgiveness and understandin ...

" from

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock and ...

, and dueted "

Beneath Your Beautiful "Beneath Your Beautiful" is a song by British musicians Labrinth and Emeli Sandé. Written by Labrinth, Mike Posner and Sandé, it was promoted as the sixth single from Labrinth's debut album, ''Electronic Earth'' (2012), and is included as a b ...

" with Emeli Sande. His winner's single was " The Power of Love", performed as a duet with

James Arthur James Arthur (born 2 March 1988) is an English singer and songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the ninth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2012. His debut single, a cover of Shontelle's "Impossible", was released by Syco Music after the fin ...

, who won the ninth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2012. On 15 December 2019, Harris released the song "Cry", and on its day of release, he performed the song on the Live Final of '' The X Factor: The Band''.

Discography

Singles

Awards and nominations

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Dalton Living people 1993 births Jamaican male singers Jamaican pop singers Jamaican reggae singers Jamaican LGBT singers Pansexual men People from Clarendon Parish, Jamaica The X Factor winners The X Factor (British TV series) winners Jamaican expatriates in the United Kingdom Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom Pansexual musicians 21st-century LGBT people