The second and final series of the New Zealand television reality music competition ''

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 ...

'' premiered on TV3 in February 2015. Pre-auditions began in October 2014. As well as again being open to singers aged 14 and over, the series was also open to bands, which had to contain no more than five members and have at least two singers. The contestants were split into the show's four traditional categories: Boys, Girls, Over 25s and Groups. The series premiered on Sunday 15 February, and screened three nights per week (SundayTuesday) until March 15, when it returned to the regular schedule of two nights per week (SundayMonday). As well as being broadcast on TV3, the full series was also streamed live on TV3's website. The live shows were simulcast on

More FM More FM is a New Zealand radio network that plays hot adult contemporary music. It is operated by MediaWorks New Zealand. More FM broadcasts in 25 centres throughout New Zealand on 81 transmitters with a mix of local and network programming. ...

. The series was again hosted by

Dominic Bowden Dominic Joseph Bowden (born 15 December 1977) is a New Zealand television personality, host and voice actor. He is best known as the host of New Zealand reality series including ''New Zealand Idol, Dancing with the Stars New Zealand and The X ...

. Both former All Saints singer

Melanie Blatt Melanie Ruth Blatt (born 25 March 1975) is an English singer. She rose to fame in 1997 as a member of the girl group All Saints. The group have gained five number one singles, two multi-platinum albums, two BRIT Awards and have sold over 10 mil ...

and ''

Australian Idol ''Australian Idol'' is an Australian singing competition, which began its first season in July 2003 and ended its initial run in November 2009. As part of the ''Idol'' franchise, Australian Idol originated from the reality program ''Pop Idol' ...

'' winner

Stan Walker Stan Walker (born 23 October 1990) is an Australian-born New Zealand singer, actor, and television personality. In 2009, Walker was the winner of the seventh and last season of '' Australian Idol''. He subsequently signed a recording contrac ...

returned to judge the series. They were joined by new judges, married couple

Willy Moon William George Sinclair (born 2 June 1989), better known by his stage name Willy Moon, is a New Zealand musician, singer, songwriter and producer. He is known for his 2012 single " Yeah Yeah" which appeared on the 2012 Apple iPod advert and peak ...

and

Natalia Kills Natalia Noemi "Teddy" Sinclair (née Cappuccini; born 15 August 1986), is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She has recorded music under various aliases, most famously as Natalia Kills and Verbalicious. She is currently the lead vocali ...

until the first live show when they were both fired after bullying a contestant, then former ''The X Factor'' Australia judge

Natalie Bassingthwaighte Natalie Bassingthwaighte (; born 1 September 1975) is an Australian recording artist, actress, and Celebrity, television personality. Born and raised in Wollongong, New South Wales, she began her career in musical theatre. She later pursued an ...

and

I Am Giant I Am Giant is a rock band based in London, United Kingdom. They formed in West Auckland, New Zealand in late 2008 and released their debut album '' The Horrifying Truth'' on 1 August 2011 in Australia and New Zealand, where it has been certifie ...

drummer

Shelton Woolright Shelton Woolright is a drummer, musician and photographer. Born and raised in Auckland, New Zealand, Auckland, he became the drummer of alternative rock band Blindspott in 1997, before leaving the group in 2008. Later that year, Woolright formed th ...

from the second live show. The series was accompanied by spin-off show '' The Xtra Factor'', which was hosted by Guy Williams,

Sharyn Casey Sharyn Mary-Ellen Casey ('' née'' Wakefield; born 24 December 1985) is a radio host on The Edge's drive show, '' The Edge Afternoons with Sharyn & Jayden'', a host on the New Zealand version of ''Dancing with the Stars'', and a celebrity panel ...

, and Clint Roberts, and screened on

Four 4 (four) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number following 3 and preceding 5. It is the smallest semiprime and composite number, and is considered unlucky in many East Asian cultures. In mathematics Four is the smallest c ...

immediately after ''The X Factor''. As of February 2016, five acts from series 2 have been signed to a certain music label. Beau Monga, Mae Valley, Brendon Thomas and The Vibes were signed to Sony Music New Zealand, Stevie Tonks was signed to Christian music label "Parachute" and Finlay Robertson had received a grant by

NZ On Air NZ On Air (NZOA; mi, Irirangi te Motu), formally the Broadcasting Commission, is an autonomous Crown entity and commission of the New Zealand Government responsible for funding support for broadcasting and creative works. The commission oper ...

to release a single titled "Control".

Development

''The X Factor'' was created by

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 ...

in the United Kingdom and the New Zealand version is based on the original UK series. Broadcast funding agency

contributed $800,000 as a minority investor, for the production of 41 episodes of 60 minutes duration each. The series' broadcast sponsor is

McDonald's McDonald's Corporation is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain, founded in 1940 as a restaurant operated by Richard and Maurice McDonald, in San Bernardino, California, United States. They rechri ...

, with

Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...

, Fruttare,

2degrees 2degrees is a New Zealand telecommunications provider. Its mobile network launched on 4 August 2009 after nine years of planning. 2degrees offers prepaid and pay-monthly mobile services as well as fixed-line phone and broadband services. 2degree ...

and VO5 as programme partners. The initial pre-audition tour of 13 towns and cities was held in October and early November 2014, with the judges' auditions round filmed in Auckland in late November and early December. The Boot Camp round was filmed in mid-January 2015 in Auckland.

Judges and host

In September, two of the judges from the first series,

and

, were confirmed to return as judges. The other two judges from the first series,

Daniel Bedingfield Daniel John Bedingfield (born 3 December 1979) is a New Zealand-British singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is the eldest brother of fellow singers Natasha Bedingfield and Nikola Rachelle. He was a judge on '' The X Factor New Z ...

and

Ruby Frost Jane de Jong (born 1987), known professionally as Ruby Frost, is a New Zealand singer and songwriter from Auckland. In 2009, she won the nationwide music competition MTV ''42Unheard'', giving her a recording contract with Universal Music New Zea ...

, were confirmed as not returning for the second series, with Frost wanting to focus on her music career. In October the final two judges were confirmed as New Zealand-born singer

and his wife, English singer

. On 16 March 2015, only hours before the second live results show, Kills and Moon were sacked from the show after a public backlash ensued against the couple after they berated a contestant's appearance on air during the first live show the previous night (15 March). More than 50,000 people signed a petition to get the couple sacked. For the show on 16 March, there were only two judges on the panel. ''The X Factor'' Australia judge

and New Zealand-born

drummer

were named as the replacements of Moon and Kills respectively. In August 2014,

was confirmed to return as the host of the second series.

Selection process

Pre-auditions

The first appeal for applicants was made on 24 August 2014, with the announcement of the application process and pre-audition tour details. Pre-auditions in front of the show's producers began on 11 October 2014 and travelled through 13 locations around New Zealand. This was a reduction from the 27 locations visited for the first series, with the second series focusing mainly on cities. Bands were also able to pre-audition in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch or by uploading a performance video.

Judges' auditions

The auditionees chosen by the producers were invited back to the last set of auditions that took place in front of the judges and a live studio audience. These auditions were filmed at SkyCity Theatre in Auckland from 26 November to 2 December 2014 and broadcast from 15 February. The successful contestants then progressed to the Boot Camp round. Notable returning auditionees included three contestants who had competed in the first series: Finlay Robertson, who made it to judges' retreats; Hannah Cosgrove, who reached the second day of Boot Camp; and Kalsey Goodall and Nofo Lameko, who also made it to Boot Camp. Stuss featured as Cassie Henderson's backing band in week eight of the first series' live shows. Steve Broad previously appeared on the second series of ''

NZ Idol ''New Zealand Idol'', also known as ''NZ Idol'', was the New Zealand version of the Idol series originated as the hit British TV series ''Pop Idol''. New Zealand first saw the ''Idol'' format when TV2 aired '' American Idol 2'', which garnered i ...

'' in 2005, where he placed third, and on '' Pop's Ultimate Star'' in 2007. Archie Hill and Rick Aslett were two separate acts that appeared on series three of '' New Zealand's Got Talent (series 3)'' at the audition stage in 2013. Richard Aslett also went on to appear live as one of the "crowd favourites" at the finale of series 3 of NZGT in December 2013. * Auditions 1 (15 February): Featured successful auditionees: Shayla Armstrong, Jazzy Axton, Brendon Thomas and the Vibes, Joe Irvine, Ralph Zambrano, Nofo Lameko, Beau Monga, Ellaphon Tauariki and Eb Skye. * Auditions 2 (16 February) Featured successful auditionees: Michelle Beck, Liam Fitzsimon Cooper, Finlay Robertson, Matt Sainsbury, Tux Severne, Sarah Spicer and Stevie Tonks. * Auditions 3 (17 February): Featured successful auditionees: Co-lab, Hannah Cosgrove, Dr3am, Fare Thee Well, Stuss and Urban Legacy. * Auditions 4 (22 February): Featured successful auditionees: Yolanda Bartram, Steve Broad, Teea Cecil, Nyssa Collins, Malakai Funaki, Archie Hill, Ria Hoeta, The Kicks, Mansweat, Anthony O'Hagan, Julie Rogers and Reiki Ruawai. * Auditions 5 (23 February): Featured successful auditionees: Ashy Batchelor, Lili Bayliss, Georgia Bishop, Abby Cristodoulou, Bethan Dunstone-Leith, Elae, Elijah and Leilani, Joseph Emanuel, Georgina Banfield, Hiki and Kerin, Llewellyn, Looking For Alaska, Kayla Mahon and Modulation. * Auditions 6 (24 February): Featured successful auditionees: Emma Amiri-Ghaemmaghamy, Talitha Blake, Shae Brider, Alfonso Fabras, Sally Faherty, Irene Folau, Kalsey Goodall, Micah Heath, Matthew Herd, Liam Jolly, Lydia Lewis, Johnny Searle and Izaia Tilialo.

Boot Camp

The Boot Camp round was filmed at

Vector Arena Spark Arena (also known as Auckland City Arena, and formerly as Vector Arena) is a multipurpose arena in Auckland, New Zealand. The venue is located at Quay Park, Parnell, very close to Britomart Transport Centre and The Strand Station. The ar ...

in Auckland in mid-January 2015 and broadcast from 1 to 3 March. In the first part of Boot Camp, the 101 acts were divided into groups of eight and giving a song to sing. From here they were reduced down to a top 64 and were introduced to their category judge. In the six-seat challenge, the 12 acts in each category performed one song each for the judges and were allocated a seat or sent home. If all seats were filled, a swap had to take place with a previously seated contestant. Any contestant under 16 could not be swapped out if they were given a seat. The 24 successful acts were: * Boys: Micah Heath, Archie Hill, Nofo Lameko, Beau Monga, Reiki Ruawai, Stevie Tonks * Girls: Jazzy Axton, Georgina Banfield, Lili Bayliss, Nyssa Collins, Sally Faherty, Finlay Robertson * Over 25s: Talitha Blake, Steve Broad, Joseph Emanuel, Joe Irvine, Kayla Mahon, Sarah Spicer * Groups: Brendon Thomas & the Vibes, Duel, Fare Thee Well, Modulation, Stuss, Urban Legacy

Judges' retreats

The judges' retreats episodes were filmed over the month of February in locations in New Zealand and Thailand. Blatt mentored the Over 25s in

Pattaya Pattaya ( th, พัทยา, , ) is a city in Thailand. It is on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about southeast of Bangkok, within, but not part of, Bang Lamung district in the province of Chonburi province, Chonburi. Pattaya City ( ...

, Thailand, assisted by

Nicole Appleton Nicole Marie Appleton (born 7 December 1974) is a Canadian singer and television presenter. She is a member of the British girl group All Saints and Canadian duo Appleton with her elder sister Natalie Appleton. Early life Appleton was born ...

; Kills took the boys to

Titirangi Titirangi is a suburb of West Auckland in the Waitākere Ranges local board area of the city of Auckland in northern New Zealand. It is an affluent, residential suburb located 13 kilometres (8 miles) to the southwest of the Auckland city centre ...

, assisted by contestant of the first series of ''The X Factor''

Benny Tipene Benjamin Tipene (born 1990) is a New Zealand singer-songwriter and musician. He is known for his appearance on the first New Zealand series of ''The X Factor'' where he finished in third place. Competing in the Boys category, he was mentored by ...

; Moon has the Groups in Karaka, with musician and former ''

New Zealand's Got Talent ''New Zealand's Got Talent'' was a New Zealand reality television show which premiered in 2008. The show was based on the ''Got Talent'' series. The show featured singers, dancers, magicians, comedians and other variety performers of all ages co ...

'' judge Jason Kerrison; and Walker took the girls to

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

, assisted by

Ginny Blackmore Virginia Blackmore (born 6 March 1986) is a singer and songwriter from Auckland, New Zealand. Blackmore's song, ''Bones'', has received regular airplay throughout the United States and she has also performed the song on KIIS-FM, Weekend Mixtape ...

. Moon created a new group, country duo Mae Valley, made up of Abby Christodoulou and Hannah Cosgrove who had previously been eliminated at Boot Camp. At the end of judges' retreats, it was announced that each judge could bring one further act back as a wildcard, with the public voting for which of the four wildcards would become the 13th contestant. Key: : – Wildcard Winner

Contestants

Key: : – Winner : – Runner-Up : – Third Place * The Boys category was originally mentored by Natalia Kills, while the Groups category was originally mentored by Willy Moon.

Live shows

The live shows began on 15 March 2015. The shows were filmed at ''The X Factor'' NZ Studio in

Favona Favona is a mostly industry-dominated suburb of Auckland, New Zealand, and is part of the Māngere area. The suburb is in the Manukau ward, one of the thirteen administrative divisions of Auckland city, and is under governance of the Auckland Co ...

, Auckland. The finals were held in

, in Auckland.

Results summary

;Colour key : – Act in the bottom two/three and had to perform in the final showdown : – Act was in the bottom three but received the fewest votes and was immediately eliminated : – Act received the lowest number of public votes and was immediately eliminated (no final showdown)

Live show details

Week 1 (15/16 March)

* Theme: Judges' choice * Musical guests:

Savage Savage may refer to: Places Antarctica * Savage Glacier, Ellsworth Land * Savage Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Savage Ridge, Victoria Land United States * Savage, Maryland, an unincorporated community * Savage, Minnesota, a city * Savage, Mi ...

Timmy Trumpet Timothy Jude Smith (born 9 June 1982), known by his stage name Timmy Trumpet, is an Australian musician, DJ, songwriter and record producer. He has become known internationally for playing the trumpet live and making use of jazz elements in dan ...

Freaks Freak has several meanings: a person who is physically deformed or suffers from an extraordinary disease and condition, a genetic mutation in a plant or animal, etc. Freak, freaks or The Freak may also refer to: Fictional characters * Freak (Ima ...

"), Jackie Thomas ("Until the Last Goodbye") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Walker: Stuss – backed his own act, Lili Bayliss. * Blatt: Lili Bayliss – sent the result to deadlock to be fair to Stuss, who had no mentor backing them at the time. With the acts in the bottom two receiving one vote each, the result went to deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Stuss was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes. ; Notes *Kills and Moon appeared on Sunday's live show but were fired with immediate effect after bullying Joe Irvine. Monday's show went ahead with only Blatt and Walker appearing on the panel with Walker looking after Kills's Boys and Blatt looking after Moon's Groups. *Studio versions of the contestants' performances were released on iTunes starting this week. A series first. *On 23 March 2015, the performances of three acts entered the NZ Singles Chart. Stevie Tonk's performance of "Young and Beautiful" debuted at number 5, Mae Valley's performance of "If I Die Young" debuted at number 10, and Lili Bayliss' performance of "Rude" debuted at number 18.

Week 2 (22/23 March)

* Theme: Biggest records right now * Musical guests:

("Love Me Anyway"), Jamie McDell ("Back Of My Mind") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Woolright: Nofo Lameko – backed his own act, Fare Thee Well. * Bassingthwaighte: Fare Thee Well – backed her own act, Nofo Lameko. * Blatt: Nofo Lameko – had never felt a connection with Lameko. * Walker: Nofo Lameko – based on what he saw in the future for the performers. ; Notes *On 30 March 2015, Brendon Thomas and the Vibes' performance of "Budapest" debuted at number 12 on the NZ Singles Chart. Their performance of "Budapest" retained its spot at number 12 for a second week.

Week 3 (30/31 March)

* Theme: Songs of summer * Musical guests: Jason Kerrison ("You Want Me As Me"),

Ricky Martin Enrique Martín Morales (born December 24, 1971), known professionally as Ricky Martin, is a Puerto Rican singer, songwriter, and actor. He is known for his musical versatility, with his Ricky Martin albums discography, discography spanning ...

(" Mr. Put It Down") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Walker: Fare Thee Well – backed his own act, Lili Bayliss. * Woolright: Lili Bayliss – backed his own act, Fare Thee Well. * Bassingthwaighte: Fare Thee Well – gave no reason. * Blatt: Fare Thee Well – thought Bayliss could hold a more sustainable career in the music industry. ; Notes * This week's shows were moved to Monday and Tuesday nights to avoid the Sunday night show clashing with the final of the

2015 Cricket World Cup The 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was the 11th Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament contested by men's national teams and organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was jointly hosted by Aust ...

. *On 3 April 2015, Nyssa Collins performance of "How Will I Know" debuted at number 19 on the NZ Singles Chart.

Week 4 (6/7 April)

* Theme:

One-hit wonders A one-hit wonder or viral hit is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music p ...

* Musical guests:

Vince Harder Vince Harder (born c.1982) is a New Zealand R&B/pop recording artist and producer. His most notable song to date is "Everything", which reached number one in New Zealand on the New Zealand Singles Chart in 2008. In May 2010, he released the si ...

("Shot Me Down"),

P-Money Peter Wadams, better known by his stage name P-Money, is a New Zealand hip-hop DJ and producer. One of his best-known works is "Everything", featuring New Zealand R&B singer Vince Harder, which reached number one on the New Zealand Singles ...

Sid Diamond Sidney Diamond (born 7 July 1986), previously known by the stage name Young Sid, is a New Zealand rapper. Biography Sid Diamond was born in South Auckland, New Zealand and later moved to Manukau City, Auckland. He is of Cook Island and Māori ...

("Truth Hurts") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Woolright: Sarah Spicer – backed his own act, Brendon Thomas and The Vibes. * Blatt: Brendon Thomas and The Vibes – backed her own act, Sarah Spicer. * Bassingthwaighte: Sarah Spicer – based her decision on who could sell more records. * Walker: Brendon Thomas and The Vibes – could not decide and sent the result to deadlock. With the acts in the bottom two receiving two votes each, the result went deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Sarah Spicer was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes. ; Notes *On 13 April 2015, the performances of two acts entered the NZ Singles Chart. Stevie Tonk's performance of "Crazy" debuted at number 5 and Lili Bayliss' performance of "Tainted Love / Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" debuted at number 14. Tonks' performance of "Crazy" managed to stay on the charts for a second week but dropped to number 18.

Week 5 (12/13 April)

* Theme:

Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently r ...

vs.

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...

* Musical guest:

( "Thinking Out Loud", "Bloodstream") * Two acts were eliminated on the fifth live show. One is the act with the lowest number of public votes and the other act is decided by the judges in the final showdown. ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Blatt: Nyssa Collins - backed her own act, Joe Irvine * Walker: Joe Irvine - backed his own act, Nyssa Collins * Woolright: Joe Irvine - based on their ability to sell records. * Bassingthwaighte: Joe Irvine - gave no reason. ; Notes * For a series first a charity single consisting of the Top 12 was created to raise money for

Ronald McDonald House Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) is an independent American nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to create, find, and support programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children. RMHC has a global network of c ...

. The single was a cover version of

Rachel Platten Rachel Ashley Platten (born May 20, 1981) is an American singer-songwriter and author. After releasing two albums independently in 2003 and 2011, she signed with Columbia Records in 2015 and released her mainstream debut single, "Fight Song", w ...

's "

Fight Song A fight song is a rousing short song associated with a sports team. The term is most common in the United States and Canada. In Australia, Mexico, and New Zealand these songs are called the team anthem, team song, or games song. First associated ...

". All money raised towards buying the single would go to Ronald McDonald House. The single's music video debuted on The Xtra Factor and was later released on iTunes which debuted at #2 soon climbing to #1 *After her elimination on The X Factor, Finlay announced on The Xtra Factor that her ''save me'' song would've been "

Tragedy Tragedy (from the grc-gre, τραγῳδία, ''tragōidia'', ''tragōidia'') is a genre of drama based on human suffering and, mainly, the terrible or sorrowful events that befall a main character. Traditionally, the intention of tragedy ...

" by

Christina Perri Christina Judith Perri (born August 19, 1986) is an American singer and songwriter. After her debut single "Jar of Hearts" was featured on the television series '' So You Think You Can Dance'' in 2010, Perri signed with Atlantic Records and relea ...

. She later sang a line of the song on the show. *On 17 April 2015, the performances of three acts entered the NZ Singles Chart. Brendon Thomas and The Vibes' performance of "Make It Rain" debuted at number 13, Stevie Tonk's performance of "Give Me Love" debuted at number 14 and Mae Valley's performance of "Sparks Fly" debuted at number 20.

Week 6 (19/20 April)

* Theme: Celebrities' choice * Musical guest:

(Medley from the album ''Truth & Soul'') * Group performance (Top 13): "

" ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Walker: Mae Valley - backed his own act, Lili Bayliss. * Woolright: Lili Bayliss - backed his own act, Mae Valley. * Blatt: Mae Valley - based on their ability to sell records. * Bassingthwaighte: Mae Valley - gave no reason. ; Notes * This week's song choices were individually chosen for each act by a New Zealand celebrity. *On 24 April 2015, the performances of two acts entered the NZ Singles Chart. Mae Valley's performance of "Landslide" debuted at number 17 and Beau Monga's performance of "Gold Digger" debuted at number 20.

Week 7 (26/27 April)

* Theme: Musical heroes * Musical guests:

Gin Wigmore Virginia Claire Wigmore (born 6 June 1986) is a New Zealand singer and songwriter. Featured on the Smashproof single "Brother" in 2009, Wigmore went on to release four albums '' Holy Smoke'' (2009), ''Gravel & Wine'' (2011), '' Blood to Bone'' ...

(" New Rush"), Avalanche City ("Inside Out") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Bassingthwaighte: Lili Bayliss - backed her own act, Stevie Tonks. * Walker: Stevie Tonks - backed his own act, Lili Bayliss. * Woolright: Lili Bayliss - thought that Tonks had the better voice. * Blatt: Lili Bayliss - had been in the bottom two for the fourth time. ; Notes * No songs from this week's performances appeared on New Zealand music charts.

Week 8: Quarter-Final (3/4 May)

* Theme: Kiwi artists * Musical guests:

Tori Kelly Victoria Loren Kelly (born December 14, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter, and voice actress. She first gained recognition after posting videos on YouTube as a teenager, and made it through to Hollywood week on the ninth season of ''Americ ...

("Nobody Love"),

The Script The Script are an Irish rock band formed in 2001 in Dublin, consisting of lead vocalist and keyboardist Danny O'Donoghue, lead guitarist Mark Sheehan, and drummer Glen Power. The band moved to London after signing to Sony Label Group imprint ...

("Paint the Town Green") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Bassingthwaighte: Steve Broad - backed her own act, Stevie Tonks. * Blatt: Stevie Tonks - backed her own act, Steve Broad. * Woolright: Steve Broad - felt Tonks would have a successful career in the music industry. * Walker: Steve Broad - felt Tonks deserved to be in the competition longer. ;Notes * The remaining five acts were solely mentored by their given celebrity and then performed a song by that particular artist. *With the elimination of Steve Broad, Melanie Blatt has no more acts left. *No songs from this week's performances appeared on New Zealand music charts.

Week 9: Semi-Final (10/11 May)

* Themes: Number ones, Songs for Mum * Musical guests:

Spandau Ballet Spandau Ballet () were an English new wave band formed in Islington, London, in 1979. Inspired by the capital's post-punk underground dance scene, they emerged at the start of the 1980s as the house band for the Blitz Kids, playing "European D ...

("Gold"),

("Lanterns") ; Judges' vote to eliminate * Woolright: Stevie Tonks – gave no reason, but effectively backed his own act, Brendon Thomas and The Vibes. * Bassingthwaighte: Brendon Thomas and The Vibes – gave no reason, but effectively backed her own act, Stevie Tonks. * Walker: Stevie Tonks – based on the final showdown performance. * Blatt: Stevie Tonks – based on the final showdown performance. ;Notes * For the first time this series, each act performed two songs. * This was the final week where a final showdown decided who would go home for this series. * The competing acts of the sixth series of the New Zealand version of ''Dancing With the Stars'' were announced during ninth results show. * No songs from this week's performances appeared on New Zealand music charts.

Week 10: Final (17/18 May)

17 May

* Themes: Party songs, Judges' choice * Musical guest:

("Kiss From A Ghost")

18 May

*Themes: Audition song, Winner's single *Group Performance: "

I'm Not the Only One "I'm Not the Only One" is a song recorded by English singer Sam Smith from their debut studio album, ''In the Lonely Hour'' (2014). It was written by Smith with Jimmy Napes, who also produced the song along with Steve Fitzmaurice. Capitol Recor ...

"/"

I Need A Dollar "I Need a Dollar" is a song performed by American singer Aloe Blacc, written by Blacc, Leon Michels, Nick Movshon and Jeff Dynamite. It is the intro song for the HBO show ''How to Make It in America'', and was featured as the iTunes Single of ...

" *Musical guests:

and

Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours) "Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I'm Yours)" is a Soul music, soul song, by American musician Stevie Wonder, released in June 1970 as a single on Motown's Tamla label. It spent six weeks at number one on the Billboard Black Singles, U.S. R&B chart an ...

Notes

*On 22 May 2015, the performances of two acts entered the NZ Singles Chart. Beau Monga's performance of "The Roimata Song" debuted at number 7 and Nyssa Collins' performance of "Don't Dream It's Over" debuted at number 8.

Charity single

In April it was announced that the finalists had recorded a

charity single A charity record or charity single is a song released by musicians with most or all proceeds raised going to a dedicated foundation or charity. George Harrison's " Bangla Desh" single in 1971 is commonly acknowledged as the first ever purpose-mad ...

, a cover of

's single "Fight Song". The charity single was released on 13 April is in aid of

Ronald McDonald House Charities Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC) is an independent American nonprofit organization whose stated mission is to create, find, and support programs that directly improve the health and well-being of children. RMHC has a global network of c ...

in New Zealand. The single debuted at number 13 on the Official New Zealand Singles Chart. The final 13 acts performed the song live on the week six results show.

Reception

Critique and controversies

Producer interference

In December 2014,

vlogger A video blog or video log, sometimes shortened to vlog (), is a form of blog for which the medium is video. Vlog entries often combine embedded video (or a video link) with supporting text, images, and other metadata. Entries can be recorded in ...

Brad Fisher claimed that during a taping of the judges' auditions, he saw the show's producer giving the judges hand signals to guide them on which contestants to put through to Boot Camp. However, judge Stan Walker denied the claims, saying that while the producers give the judges background information on the contestants, it was up to the judges to choose who goes through.

Natalia Kills outburst

During the filming of the final judges' auditions session in December 2014, while giving feedback to busker Sally Faherty, judge Natalia Kills used strong language, including profanity, to admonish audience members. Some members of the audience were shocked at the outburst and walked out. A TV3 spokeswoman said both the network and Kills apologised for the incident. The incident was featured in the final audition episode, with the profanity

bleeped A bleep censor is the replacement of a profanity or classified information with a beep (sound), beep sound (usually a ) in television and radio. It is mainly used in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong ...

out. Faherty was also heard using bleeped language backstage.

Shae Brider

In the sixth audition show, singer Shae Brider auditioned and was put through to the Boot Camp round. In the episode, Brider revealed that he had been involved in a 2004 murder in Wanganui and had served six years in prison for manslaughter. In reaction to criticism from the public and media, MediaWorks New Zealand issued a statement saying that Brider's criminal record had been fully disclosed when he entered ''The X Factor'' and that the New Zealand justice system considers that Brider has paid his debt to society and apologised for any distress the episode may have caused viewers. Donna Travers, the mother of Brider's victim, told media she was "devastated" by Brider's ''X Factor'' appearance and felt "revictimised". Brider later told media that he regretted appearing on the series and had not thought through the impact of his appearance. TV3 announced that the first two bootcamp episodes would start with an apology to Travers and her family. International ''

'' producers

FremantleMedia Australia Fremantle Australia Pty Ltd. (formerly FremantleMedia Australia) is the Australian arm of global British production and entertainment company Fremantle. It was formed in 2006 by the merger of market leader Grundy Television and comedy speciali ...

and

Syco Entertainment Syco Entertainment is a British media entertainment company, headquartered in London, founded and owned by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. The company focuses on TV production. The company was formed in 2005 through So ...

discussed the situation with the show's producers, with a spokesperson for FreemantleMedia describing the inclusion of Brider on the show was "a very poor editorial decision" and that "a more rigid approval process" would ensure a similar situation would not happen in future.

Berating of contestant

During the first live show, Kills bullied and humiliated Joe Irvine during the judges' comments, stating that there was "a doppelganger in our midst". Kills called out Irvine on his apparent copying of her husband, Willy Moon's hairstyle and dress sense. Kills deemed the contestant a "laughing stock", overtly "cheesy" and "disgusting". Moon continued her rant, saying that Irvine was "like

Norman Bates Norman Bates is a fictional character created by American author Robert Bloch as the main antagonist in his 1959 thriller novel '' Psycho''. He has an alter, Mother, who takes from the form of his abusive mother, and later victim, Norma, wh ...

dressing up in his mother's clothing, it's just a little bit creepy". Viewer response to the comments was overwhelmingly negative, with some calling for Kills and Moon to be fired from the show mid-series, some calling them out on their hypocrisy about originality and others simply stating the comments to be disgusting themselves. A

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page demanding the two be fired was set up on 15 March 2015, and within twelve hours had amassed over 50,000 likes. The incident led to criticism from the show's sponsors, franchise owner and fellow judges. Moon and Kills were both fired from the show the day after the incident and left Auckland for Los Angeles. Upon arrival in Los Angeles, Kills made her first public comments on the controversy by wishing luck to Joe Irvine and those in her former category luck in the competition, dismissing the idea of a "manufactured conspiracy" and also stated that "there are many sides to this story". The following day both Kills and Moon made further comments via Twitter, with Kills explicitly apologising to Joe Irvine, while Moon wished him luck in the competition. Kills and Moon were replaced by former ''X Factor Australia'' judge

and New Zealand-born drummer

respectively with immediate effect from the second live show.

Ratings

* The premiere episode for the second season had an average audience of 343,280. Down 26% from the previous season * Overall over 1.3 million people watched the first week of the second series. * Overall the series had an average audience of 328,160 viewers. Down 18% from the average of the previous season.

N.Z. Nielsen ratings

; Colour key: : – Highest rating during the season : – Lowest rating during the season

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:X Factor (New Zealand series 2), The New Zealand 02 2015 New Zealand television seasons series 02 Television controversies in New Zealand 2015 scandals