''X Factor Italia'' is a TV show which airs on

prime time Prime time or the peak time is the block of broadcast programming taking place during the middle of the evening for a television show. It is mostly targeted towards adults (and sometimes families). It is used by the major television networks to ...

in Italy. The singing competition is the Italian version of Britain's ''

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 ...

''. As of Season 16, it is currently hosted by

Francesca Michielin Francesca Michielin (, ; born 25 February 1995) is an Italian singer and songwriter. She rose to fame after winning the fifth season of the Italian talent show ''X Factor''. Her first single, " Distratto", debuted atop the Italian FIMI Top Digi ...

Francesco Facchinetti Francesco Facchinetti (born 2 May 1980), also known as Dj Francesco or as Oz, is an Italian DJ, producer, singer, musician and TV presenter. He rose to fame as a singer during the summer of 2003, when he released his debut single, "La canzone del ...

hosted the show's first four seasons before being replaced by

Alessandro Cattelan Alessandro Cattelan (born 11 May 1980) is an Italian television and radio presenter best known for presenting the Italian edition of ''Total Request Live (Italy), Total Request Live'', broadcast by MTV Italia, and ''Le Iene'', broadcast by Medias ...

for Season 5 up to Season 14 before being replaced by

Ludovico Tersigni Ludovico Tersigni (born 8 August 1995) is an Italian actor and television host. Biography Tersigni was born in Rome and grew up in Nettuno; he graduated from the Chris Cappell College of Anzio. In 2014, he made his acting debut in the film ''A ...

for one season. While the first four seasons were aired on

Rai Due Rai 2 is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It is the company's second television channel, and is known for broadcasting ''TG2'' news bulletins, talk ...

, the second channel of Italian public television service, at the moment the show is broadcast on

Sky Uno Sky Uno ( en, Sky One) is an Italian entertainment television channel, based on the defunct reality television channel ''SKY Vivo'', both owned and broadcast by Sky Italia. It broadcasts the Italian version of the shows ''The X Factor'', ''Got T ...

, the main channel of Sky Italy. The judges, who all belong to the Italian and international music or television world, were 3 from Season 1 to Season 3 (when the categories were: Groups, 16–24, 25+). Since Season 4, the 16-24 category was split into two parts (Boys and Girls), following the British example, therefore the judges became 4. The programme's success is witnessed by the number of singers who became famous after the show. Among the others we can notice

Giusy Ferreri Giusy Ferreri (; born Giuseppa Gaetana Ferreri on 17 April 1979) is an Italian singer and songwriter. In 2008, she took part at the first Italian edition of the talent show X Factor, coming in second place. She topped the Italian Singles Chart ...

from Season 1, Noemi from Season 2,

Marco Mengoni Marco Mengoni (; born 25 December 1988) is an Italian pop singer-songwriter who rose to fame in 2009, after winning the third season of Italian talent show ''X Factor''. Since that he has sold over 2.8 million records in Italy, peaking the I ...

from Season 3,

Ruggero Pasquarelli Ruggero Pasquarelli (born 10 September 1993), known professionally as by the stage name Ruggero (stylised in all caps), is an Italian singer and actor. In 2010, he took part in the fourth series of the Italian talent show ''X Factor''. He is als ...

from Season 4,

from Season 5,

Chiara Galiazzo Chiara Galiazzo (; born 12 August 1986) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 2012, after winning the sixth season of the Italian talent show ''X Factor''. Her debut single, titled "Due respiri" and co-written by Eros Ramazzotti, was rel ...

Mahmood Mahmud is a Romanization of Arabic, transliteration of the male Arabic given name (), common in most parts of the Islamic world. It comes from the Arabic triconsonantal root Ḥ-M-D, meaning ''praise'', along with ''Muhammad (name), Muhammad''. ...

and Le Donatella from Season 6,

Michele Bravi Michele Bravi (born 19 December 1994) is an Italian pop singer, songwriter and actor. He rose to fame after winning the seventh season of the Italian ''X Factor''. His coronation song, "La vita e la felicità", was penned by Tiziano Ferro and r ...

from Season 7,

Lorenzo Fragola Lorenzo Fragola (born 26 April 1995) is an Italian singer-songwriter. He rose to fame after winning the eighth season of the Italian talent show ''X Factor''. His winner's single, "The Reason Why", debuted atop the Italian Singles Chart, and was ...

and Madh from Season 8, Enrico Nigiotti and

Måneskin Måneskin are an Italian Rock music, rock band formed in Rome in 2016. The band are composed of vocalist Damiano David, bassist Victoria De Angelis, guitarist Thomas Raggi, and drummer Ethan Torchio. Performing in the streets in their early days, ...

from Season 11.

Series summary

* Act in Mara's Category * Act in Morgan's Category * Act in Simona's Category * Act in Claudia's Category * Act in

Elio Elio is an Italian male given name. Origin A name of dual origin, Elio is primarily a revival of it, Elio, label=none (Helios), the Greek god of the Sun. it, Elio, label=none derives, through the Latin ''Helius'', from the Ancient Greek Ἥ� ...

's Category * Act in

Enrico Enrico is both an Italian masculine given name and a surname, Enrico means homeowner, or king, derived from ''Heinrich'' of Germanic origin. It is also a given name in Ladino. Equivalents in other languages are Henry (English), Henri ( French), Enr ...

's Category * Act in

Arisa Rosalba Pippa (born 20 August 1982), better known by her stage name Arisa, is an Italian singer and actress. Early life Arisa was born in Genoa, Italy. A week after her birth, her family moved back to their original hometown, Pignola, a villag ...

's Category * Act in

Mika Mika is a given name, a nickname and a surname. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People known just as Mika * Mika (singer) (born 1983), Lebanese-born British singer-songwriter Michael Penniman, Jr. * Mika (footbal ...

's Category * Act in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

's Category * Act in

Fedez Federico Leonardo Lucia (born 15 October 1989), known professionally as Fedez (), is an Italian rapper, singer, songwriter, social media personality and businessman. In 2011, he released the albums ''Penisola che non c'è'' and ''Il mio primo di ...

's Category * Act in

Skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other cuticle, animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have diffe ...

's Category * Act in Alvaro's Category * Act in Manuel's Category * Act in

Lodo LoDo (Lower Downtown) is an unofficial neighborhood in Denver, Colorado, and is one of the oldest places of settlement in the city. It is a mixed-use historic district, known for its nightlife, and serves as an example of success in urban reinves ...

's Category * Act in

Samuel Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

's Category * Act in Malika's Category * Act in

Sfera SFera is a science fiction society from Zagreb, Croatia. It was founded in 1976, thus marking the beginnings of organised science fiction fandom in the region. SFera is the official organiser of SFeraKon, an annual Croatian science fiction ...

's Category * Act in Emma's Category * Act in

Hell In religion and folklore, hell is a location in the afterlife in which evil souls are subjected to punitive suffering, most often through torture, as eternal punishment after death. Religions with a linear divine history often depict hell ...

's Category * Act in Ambra's Category * Act in Dargen's Category * Act in

Rkomi Mirko Manuele Martorana (born 19 April 1994), known professionally as Rkomi, is an Italian rapper and songwriter. Early life Rkomi was born and raised in Milan in the famous district of Calvairate, located in the eastern part of the suburbs of M ...

's Category

Contestants, categories and judges

Key: : – Winning judge/category. Winners are in bold, eliminated contestants in small font.

First season (2008)

In the first edition held in the period 10 March 2008 to 27 May 2008, Morgan's contestants (Vocal Groups) were labelled "pastel green contestants", Simona's contestants (25+ years) the "pink contestants" and Mara's (16–24 years) the "pastel blue contestants"

Second season (2008-2009)

The second season was held between 25 November 2008 and 19 April 2009. The three judges were the same as the first series line-up. Simona Ventura mentored the "16-24s", Morgan the "25 and Overs" and Mara Maionchi the Groups. The winner was

Matteo Becucci Matteo Becucci (born in Livorno on 4 August 1970) is an Italian pop singer and musician, best known for winning the second season of the X Factor reality singing contest in 2009. Biography In 1990, aged 20, he made his debut with performances i ...

from the 25 and over category.

Third season (2009)

In the third edition from 16 June 2009 until 2 December 2009, the judge Simona Ventura was replaced by Claudia Mori. Morgan's contestants (16–24 years) were dubbed the "blue contestants", Claudia Mori's contestants (25+ years) the "orange" and Mara Maionchi's category of the Vocal Groups, the "red contestants". The A&K, Mara's group, were formed by Andrea and Chiara (Kiara). However, Chiara was later disqualified from the show because of a regulation prohibiting the sons/daughters of RAI employees from entering the show, in this case, Chiara's Mother. She was replaced by Daniele Vit.

Fourth season (2010)

From that year there are four categories with the respective judges: * Mara Maionchi (16-24 Boys) * Anna Tatangelo (16-24 Girls) * Elio (25 +) * Enrico Ruggeri (Vocal Groups)

Fifth season (2011–2012)

The fifth season of ''X Factor'' was televised from 20 October 2011 to 5 January 2012. For the first time, it was broadcast by Sky Uno HD, rather than

Rai 2 Rai 2 is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It is the company's second television channel, and is known for broadcasting ''TG2'' news bulletins, talk ...

. The auditions were held from 5 July to 12 September 2011.

Sixth season (2012)

The sixth season of ''X Factor'' started on 20 September 2012. It is broadcast live by Sky Uno HD, and a short version recorded broadcast on free digital TV

Cielo Cielo (Spanish and Italian for "heaven" or "sky"), El Cielo (in Spanish) or Il Cielo (in Italian) may refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Cielo'' (film), a 2017 Chile-Canadian documentary film * Cielo (TV channel), an Italian television ...

Seventh season (2013)

The seventh season of ''X Factor'' started on 26 September 2013. It is broadcast live by Sky Uno HD.

Eight season (2014)

The eight season of ''X Factor'' started on 18 September 2014. It is broadcast live by Sky Uno HD.

Ninth season (2015)

The ninth season of ''X Factor'' started on 10 September 2015. It is broadcast live by Sky Uno HD.

Tenth season (2016)

The tenth season of ''X Factor'' started on 22 September 2016. It was broadcast live by Sky Uno HD, and a recorded version was broadcast on free digital channel TV8.

Eleventh season (2017)

The eleventh season of ''X Factor'' started on 14 September 2017. It is broadcast live by Sky Uno HD, and a recorded version is broadcast on free digital channel TV8. The season finale, aired on 14 December 2017, marked the victory of

Lorenzo Licitra Lorenzo Licitra (born 25 September 1992) is an Italian singer, best known for winning the eleventh season of the Italian talent show '' X Factor'' in 2017. His debut single, "In the Name of Love", was released on 24 November 2017. Discography ...

against

and became the most viewed Italian X Factor live show ever.

Twelfth season (2018)

The twelfth season of ''X Factor'' started on 6 September 2018. It was broadcast live by Sky Uno HD, and a recorded version was broadcast on free digital channel TV8. The final episode of the season, aired on both Sky Uno HD and TV8, was won by

Anastasio Anastasio is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name * Anastasio Alfaro (1865–1951), Costa Rican zoologist, geologist and explorer * Anastasio Aquino (1792–1833), Salvadoran indigenou ...

. This marked

Mara Maionchi Mara Maionchi (; born 22 April 1941 in Bologna) is an Italian record producer and a TV personality. Biography Mara began her career in 1967, as secretary in the '' Ariston Records'' press office, working with Ornella Vanoni and Mino Reitano. ...

's second victory in a row. This season also featured

Asia Argento Asia Argento (; born Aria Maria Vittoria Rossa Argento; 20 September 1975) is an Italian actress and filmmaker. The daughter of filmmaker Dario Argento, she has had roles in several of her father's features and achieved mainstream success with a ...

as a judge before she was fired after being accused of sexual misconduct by actor

Jimmy Bennett James Michael Bennett (born February 9, 1996) is an American actor. He is known for his roles as a child actor in '' Daddy Day Care'', ''Hostage'', '' The Amityville Horror'', ''Poseidon'', '' Evan Almighty'', ''Orphan'', ''Shorts'', and as yo ...

Thirteenth season (2019)

The thirteenth season of ''X Factor'' started on 12 September 2019. It was broadcast live by Sky Uno HD, and a recorded version was broadcast on free digital channel TV8.

Fourteenth season (2020)

The fourteenth season of ''X Factor'' started on 17 September 2020. It was broadcast live by Sky Uno HD and a recorded version was broadcast on free digital channel TV8. The final episode of the season, aired on both Sky Uno HD and TV8, was won by

Casadilego Elisa Coclite (born 22 March 2003), known professionally as Casadilego, is an Italian singer, most known for winning the fourteenth season of the Italian talent show '' X Factor''. Her stage name literally means ''Lego-House'', after the Ed She ...

. This marked Hell Raton's first victory.

Fifteenth season (2021)

The fifteenth season of ''X Factor'' started on 16 September 2021 and concluded on 9 December with

Baltimora Baltimora was an Italian music project from Milan, active from 1984 to 1987. They are best known for their 1985 single "Tarzan Boy" and are often considered a one-hit wonder in the United Kingdom and the United States. In other European countri ...

being the winner, marking the second and final victory for Hell Raton.

Sixteenth season (2022)

The sixteenth season of ''X Factor'' started on 15 September 2022.

References

External links

Official website
{{X Factor (Italy) 2008 Italian television series debuts Italian music television series Italian reality television series Television series by Fremantle (company) 2000s Italian television series 2010s Italian television series Italian television series based on British television series RAI original programming