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 ...

'' is an

Italian television Television in Italy was introduced in 1939, when the first experimental broadcasts began. However, this lasted for a very short time: when fascist Italy entered World War II in 1940 all transmissions were interrupted, and were resumed in earnest ...

music competition to find new singing talent; the winner receives a

€ The euro sign () is the currency sign used for the euro, the official currency of the eurozone and unilaterally adopted by Kosovo and Montenegro. The design was presented to the public by the European Commission on 12 December 1996. It consists o ...

300,000 recording contract with

Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

. Before the start of the auditions process it was announced that

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 ...

, Morgan and

Simona Ventura Simona Ventura (born 1 April 1965) is an Italian television presenter. Television career Ventura was born in Bentivoglio. She started in TV on "Domani Sposi" with Giancarlo Magalli on Rai Uno. Her love for sport took her into sports reporting ...

would be confirmed as judges and mentors, whilst

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 ...

has been chosen for replacing

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 ...

in the role; also

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'', broadcast by MTV Italia, and ''Le Iene'', broadcast by Mediaset's Italia 1. Cattelan also ...

returned as host. The seventh season aired 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 ...

starting from 26 September 2013 to 12 December 2013. Auditions for season 7 took place in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

and

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

in June 2013; bootcamp took place in Milan for two days, on 26 and 27 June. Unconfirmed rumors revealed that Elio will mentor the Over-25s, Morgan the boys, Mika the girls and Ventura the groups; they selected their final three acts during judges' houses.

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 ...

, a member of the category Boys and mentored by Morgan, was announced the winner of the competition on 12 December 2013. His winner's single, "La vita e la felicità", released immediately after the end of the show, was co-written by Italian singer-songwriter

Tiziano Ferro Tiziano Ferro (; born 21 February 1980) is an Italian singer, songwriter, producer and author. He broke through in 2001 with his international hit single "Perdono" and has remained commercially successful since then, in several countries. Ferro h ...

Judges, presenters and other personnel

During the sixth Live Show of the season,

complained about voting mechanism, and tossed allegations against

, accusing her of being «phony» in judging her acts. In February 2013, Sky Movies and Entertainment vice-president Andrea Scrosati announced in an interview to ''

Corriere della Sera The ''Corriere della Sera'' (; en, "Evening Courier") is an Italian daily newspaper published in Milan with an average daily circulation of 410,242 copies in December 2015. First published on 5 March 1876, ''Corriere della Sera'' is one of It ...

'' that Arisa would not be confirmed as a mentor. At first, even Morgan and

seemed intended to leave the show; newspapers and websites cited

Malika Ayane Malika Ayane (; born 31 January 1984) is an Italian pop singer. Early life Malika Ayane was born in Milan, Italy, on 31 January 1984, to a Moroccan father, Ahmed, and an Italian mother. She grew up in the Zone 2 of Milan, the most multi-ethni ...

Lorella Cuccarini Lorella Cuccarini Persili (born August 10, 1965) is an Italian showgirl, television personality, dancer, singer, and actress. Life and career Born in Rome, at nine years old Cuccarini started to attend the dance school of (choreographer and hu ...

and

Gigi D'Alessio Luigi "Gigi" D'Alessio (born 24 February 1967) is an Italian popular singer and Neapolitan singer-songwriter. In his career, he has sold over 26 million records. Career D'Alessio was born in Naples. He was well known in Naples in the early 1990s ...

as possible replacements. On 23 April it was announced that

would be the first non-Italian mentor in the competition history; finally, on 12 and 19 May the presences of Morgan and Elio were confirmed.

has been confirmed to present the main show on Sky Uno HD in February 2013. Also vocal coaches Alberto Tafuri, Paola Folli and Gaetano Cappa, music-director

Lucio Fabbri Lucio Fabbri (born 25 March 1955) is an Italian composer, conductor, arranger, producer and multi-instrumentalist. Born in Crema, Lombardy, Fabbri graduated in violin and then in the early 1970s he was a member of the progressive rock groups Il ...

and art-director and choreographer Luca Tomassini were confirmed, whilst Mika chose

Rossana Casale Rossana Casale (born July 21, 1959) is an Italian singer. Biography Casale was born in New York City to an Italian-American father, photographer Giac Casale, and an Italian mother. Shortly after her birth the family moved to Venice, Italy, then ...

as the fourth vocal coach.

Applications and auditions

A preliminary phase of auditions was held: *at

Castel Sant'Elmo Castel Sant'Elmo is a medieval fortress located on Vomero Hill adjacent to the Certosa di San Martino, overlooking Naples, Italy. The name "Sant'Elmo" derives from a former 10th-century church dedicated to Sant'Erasmo, shortened to "Ermo" and, ...

, from 12 to 14 May 2013; *at Unicredit Tower,

, from 25 to 27 May 2013. The judges auditions was held: *at 105 Stadium,

, on 1 and 2 June 2013; *at Teatro Dal Verme,

, from 17 to 19 June 2013. On 18 June auditions

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 ...

starred as guest-judge.

Bootcamp

Bootcamp took place at

Mediolanum Forum Mediolanum Forum (originally the Forum di Assago, formerly the FilaForum and DatchForum) is an indoor arena, indoor sports arena that is located in Assago, a small town 3 km outside Milan, Italy. The arena has a seating capacity of 12,700 and is ...

Assago Assago ( lmo, Assagh or ) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Milan, in the northern Italian region of Lombardy. It contains the headquarters of Nestlé's Italian branch and the Mediolanum Forum Mediolanum Forum (originally ...

, over two days, on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27 June.

Judges' houses

"Home visits" was broadcast on 17 October. Morgan mentored the Boys at E-Werk, Berlin, assisted by

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 ...

; Mika took the Girls at

Slane Castle Slane Castle (Irish ''Cáisleán Bhaile Shláine'') is located in the village of Slane, within the Boyne Valley of County Meath, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. The castle has been the family seat of the Marquess Conyngham, Conyngham family since i ...

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

, assisted by

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 ...

; Elio auditioned the Over 25s at Museo del Violino,

Cremona Cremona (, also ; ; lmo, label= Cremunés, Cremùna; egl, Carmona) is a city and ''comune'' in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po river in the middle of the ''Pianura Padana'' ( Po Valley). It is the capital of th ...

, with Linus, and Ventura tested the Groups at Officine Grandi Riparazioni,

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

with

Davide Dileo David Dileo, also known as Boosta, (born 27 September 1974) is an Italian singer, writer, and television host. He is known as the co-founder of the alternative rock band Subsonica. Discography As soloist (DJ) *EP ** 2004: ''Crash'' (Danc ...

. The twelve eliminated acts were: *Boys: Andrea Butturini, Marco Colonna, Alberto Galuppini *Girls: Chiara Grispo, Valentina Livi, Roberta Pompa *25+: Valeria Crescenzi, Sebastiano Di Santo, Adriana Salvadori *Groups: Dynamo, Extra, Mr. Rain & Osso In the second live show, the eliminated act of the home visits, Roberta Pompa was brought back, after a final showdown with Mr. Rain & Osso.

Contestants and categories

Key: : – Winner : – Runner-up : – Third place

Live shows

Results summary

The number of votes received by each act were released by

Sky Italia Sky Italia S.r.l. is an Italian satellite television platform owned by the American media conglomerate Comcast. Sky Italia also broadcasts three national free-to-air television channels: TV8, Cielo and Sky TG24. As of 2018, following an agree ...

after the final. ;Colour key

Live show details

Week 1 (24 October 2013)

*Group performance: " Qualcosa che non c'è" (with

Elisa The enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) (, ) is a commonly used analytical biochemistry assay, first described by Eva Engvall and Peter Perlmann in 1971. The assay uses a solid-phase type of enzyme immunoassay (EIA) to detect the presence ...

) *Celebrity performers:

Chiara Chiara is a word and place name of Italian origin, meaning "bright" or "clear", and may refer to: People * Chiara (name) * Chiara da Montefalco, (1268–1308), an Augustinian nun and abbess * Chiara (Italian singer) or Chiara Galiazzo (born 1986 ...

(" The Final Countdown"/"Il futuro che sarà"/" Purple Rain"/"L'esperienza dell'amore"/" Distratto"),

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 ...

("Cigno nero"/"

Due respiri "Due respiri" is a song written by Eros Ramazzotti, Luca Chiaravalli and Saverio Grandi and recorded by Italian singer Chiara Galiazzo. The song was released as Chiara's debut single on 8 December 2012, immediately after she won the sixth series ...

"), Elisa ("L'anima vola") and

Icona Pop Icona Pop ( ) is a Swedish electropop duo which formed in 2009, with electro house and indie pop music influences. Its two members, Caroline Hjelt (born 8 November 1987) and Aino Jawo (born 7 July 1986), grew up in Stockholm and create what the ...

(" I Love It") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Ventura: Lorenzo Iuracà – backed her own act, FreeBoys. * Morgan: FreeBoys – backed his own act, Lorenzo Iuracà. * Mika: Lorenzo Iuracà – considered it appropriate to continue the project of an Italian boyband. * Elio: Lorenzo Iuracà – having revealed the difficulties in approaching the songwriting.

Week 2 (31 October 2013)

*Group performance: " Walk on the Wild Side" *Celebrity performers:

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. Her career began when she met record producers Starsmith and Frankmusik, and she was later spotted by Jamie Lillywhite, who became her manager and Artists and ...

Burn A burn is an injury to skin, or other tissues, caused by heat, cold, electricity, chemicals, friction, or ultraviolet radiation (like sunburn). Most burns are due to heat from hot liquids (called scalding), solids, or fire. Burns occur mainl ...

") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Elio: FreeBoys – backed his own act, Fabio Santini. * Ventura: Fabio Santini – backed her own act, FreeBoys. * Mika: FreeBoys – wanted to give Santini another chance. * Morgan: Fabio Santini – could not decide so chose to take it to deadlock. With both acts receiving two votes each, the result went to deadlock and a new public vote commenced for 200 seconds. FreeBoys were eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

Week 3 (7 November 2013)

*Theme: Songs from the

1990s File:1990s decade montage.png, From top left, clockwise: The Hubble Space Telescope orbits the Earth after it was launched in 1990; American F-16s and F-15s fly over burning oil fields in Operation Desert Storm, also known as the 1991 Gulf War ...

*Celebrity performers: John Newman (" Love Me Again"), Mika and

("Stardust") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Elio: Alan Scaffardi – considered Aba the best singer in the competition * Morgan: Alan Scaffardi – found Aba's performances more convincing. * Mika: Aba – appreciated Scaffardi's passion. * Ventura: Alan Scaffardi – considered Aba had an untapped potential.

Week 4 (14 November 2013)

*Theme: Hell Factor (double elimination) *Group performance: " The Passenger" *Celebrity performers:

Luca Carboni Luca Carboni (born 12 October 1962) is an Italian singer-songwriter. He debuted in 1981 as guitarist in the band Teobaldi Rock, publishing his first solo album in 1983. He is also a painter and carpenter. Biography Carboni was born in Bologna. ...

and

("Persone silenziose"),

Tom Odell Thomas Peter Odell (born 24 November 1990) is an English singer-songwriter. He released his debut extended play, ''Songs from Another Love'', in 2012. It won the 2013 BRIT Awards, BRITs Critics' Choice Award in early 2013. Odell's debut studio ...

(" Another Love") ;Judges' votes to eliminate (Part 1) * Mika: Fabio Santini – backed his own act, Roberta Pompa. * Elio: Roberta Pompa – backed his own act, Fabio Santini. * Morgan: Roberta Pompa – thought that Santini could have more chances in the music business. * Ventura: Roberta Pompa – considered Santini particularly original. ;Judges' votes to eliminate (Part 2) * Mika: Street Clerks – backed his own act, Gaia Galizia. * Ventura: Gaia Galizia – backed her own act, Street Clerks. * Elio: Street Clerks – considered Galizia particularly interesting. * Morgan: Gaia Galizia – could not decide so chose to take it to deadlock. With both acts receiving two votes each, the result went to deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Street Clerks were eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

Week 5 (21 November 2013)

*Theme: Hell Factor (double elimination) *Group performance: "

It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing) "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" is a 1931 composition by Duke Ellington with lyrics by Irving Mills. It is now accepted as a jazz standard, and jazz historian Gunther Schuller characterized it as "now legendary" and "a prophe ...

" (with

Matthew Morrison Matthew James Morrison (born October 30, 1978) is an American actor, dancer and singer-songwriter, best known for his role as Will Schuester on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox television show ''Glee (TV series), Glee'' (2009–2015). He has s ...

) *Celebrity performers:

("Nuvole di fango"/"Cigno nero"/"Alfonso Signorini (eroe nazionale)") and

Editors Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...

A Ton of Love "A Ton of Love" is the first single from British post-punk revival band Editors from their 2013 album, ''The Weight of Your Love''. The song first aired on 6 May 2013 on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show, with the music video being released on the same ...

") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Elio: Gaia Galizia – backed his own act, Fabio Santini. * Mika: Fabio Santini – backed his own act, Gaia Galizia. * Morgan: Fabio Santini – found Galizia's performances more convincent. * Ventura: Fabio Santini – considered Galizia more deserving of staying in the competition.

Week 6: Quarter-final (28 November 2013)

*Theme: Dance performance (Round 1); Mentor's Choice (Round 2) *Group performance: "

Beautiful Day "Beautiful Day" is a song by Irish rock band U2. It is the first track on their tenth studio album, ''All That You Can't Leave Behind'' (2000), and was released as the album's lead single on 9 October 2000. The song was a commercial success, h ...

"/"

Bicycle Race "Bicycle Race" is a song by the British rock band Queen. It was released on their 1978 album ''Jazz'' and written by Queen's lead singer Freddie Mercury. It was released as a double A-side single together with the song "Fat Bottomed Girls", rea ...

" (with

Elio e le Storie Tese Elio e le Storie Tese (; literally "Elio and the Troubled Stories"), often abbreviated EelST, was an Italian comedy rock band from Milan, formed in 1980. Its leader was Stefano Belisari, better known as Elio. They announced their split on 17 Oct ...

) *Celebrity performers:

Non passerai "Non passerai" is a song written by Tobias Gad, E. Kidd Bogart, Lee DeWyze and Andrea Regazzetti, recorded in 2013 by Italian singer Marco Mengoni. After being released as a digital download on 26 February 2013, as part of a promotional campaign p ...

"/"

Pronto a correre "Pronto a correre" (English: ''Ready to run'') is a song recorded by Italian singer Marco Mengoni for his album ''prontoacorrere, #prontoacorrere''. The track, written by Mark Owen, Benjamin Mark Weaver, Jamie Norton, Dave Gibson (Scottish singer/ ...

"/"

L'essenziale "L'essenziale" (; en, "The essential") is a song by Italian singer Marco Mengoni and the lead single from his second studio album, '' #prontoacorrere'' (2013). Released in Italy on 13 February 2013, the song was written by Roberto Casalino, Fra ...

") and

Olly Murs Oliver Stanley Murs (born 14 May 1984) is an English singer, songwriter, and television presenter. He was runner-up on the sixth series of ''The X Factor'' in 2009 and was subsequently signed to RCA Records and Sony Music in the United Kingdom, ...

Hand on Heart "Hand on Heart" is a song by English singer-songwriter Olly Murs for his third studio album '' Right Place Right Time'' (2012). The song was released as the fifth single from the album, although released to promote the 2013 re-release. It was co ...

") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Mika: Ape Escape – backed his own act, Gaia Galizia. * Ventura: Gaia Galizia – backed her own act, Ape Escape. * Elio: Gaia Galizia – stated that he had preferred Ape Escape. * Morgan: Ape Escape – considered Galizia more interesting for the music business. With both acts receiving two votes each, the result went to deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Gaia Galizia was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

Week 7: Semi-final (5 December 2013)

*Theme: Previously unreleased songs (Round 1); Mentor's Choice (Round 2) *Group performance: "Spirito e virtù" (with Morgan) *Celebrity performers:

Katy Perry Katheryn Elizabeth Hudson (born October 25, 1984), known professionally as Katy Perry, is an American singer, songwriter, and television personality. Known for her influence on modern pop music and her Camp (style), campy style, she has been ...

Unconditionally "Unconditionally" is a song by American singer Katy Perry. It was released as the second single from her fourth studio album ''Prism'' (2013) on October 16, 2013, two days before the album was released. Inspiration for the song came primarily fro ...

") ;Judges' votes to eliminate * Morgan: Aba – backed his own act, Andrea D'Alessio. * Elio: Andrea D'Alessio – backed his own act, Aba. * Ventura: Aba – considered D'Alessio more original. * Mika: Andrea D'Alessio – could not decide so chose to take it to deadlock. With both acts receiving two votes each, the result went to deadlock and reverted to the earlier public vote. Andrea D'Alessio was eliminated as the act with the fewest public votes.

Week 8: Final (12 December 2013)

*Theme: Celebrity duets (Round 1); Previously unreleased songs (Round 2); "My song" (own choice, Round 3) *Group performance: "

Man in the Mirror "Man in the Mirror" is a song by the American singer-songwriter Michael Jackson. It was written by Glen Ballard and Siedah Garrett and produced by Jackson and Quincy Jones. It was released on February 6, 1988, as the fourth single from Jackson' ...

" (all X Factor acts with

Mario Biondi Mario Biondi (born Mario Ranno, on 28 January 1971) is an Italian singer. His pseudonym takes up that of his father Giuseppe Ranno, singer, aka Stefano Biondi. Early life Born in Catania, Italy, Mario Biondi is the son of a popular song si ...

Giorgia Giorgia is the Italian cognate of the female name Georgia. Notable people with the name include: Arts and entertainment *Giorgia (singer), Italian singer, born ''Giorgia Todrani'' *Giorgia Fumanti, Italian-Canadian soprano and singer of operatic po ...

and

) *Celebrity performers: Giorgia ("Quando una stella muore"), Mika and Morgan ("Altrove"/"

Relax, Take It Easy "Relax, Take It Easy" is the debut single by British singer-songwriter Mika, from his debut album ''Life in Cartoon Motion''. In the UK, it failed to chart upon its original release, but after "Grace Kelly" topped the charts in January 2007, it ...

"/"Altre forme di vita"/" We Are Golden"),

One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the gr ...

(" Story of My Life"), Elisa ("Ecco che")

References

External links

''X Factor Italia''
{{X Factor (Italy) 2013 Italian television seasons Italian music television series Italy 07 X Factor (Italian TV series)