Chico Slimani

Chico Slimani
Chico Slimani
	Chico Slimani
Background information
Origin	Morocco
Years active	2006–present (singer)

Yousseph "Chico" Slimani (born 1971) is a British pop singer who rose to prominence in the United Kingdom after reaching the finals of the 2005 series of the talent show The X Factor.

Early life

Chico was born in Wales but moved to Morocco when he was a baby. While in Morocco he was a mountain goat herder until the age of 13, before once again moving back to the UK at age 14 to live in Crawley, West Sussex. Chico has had a number of jobs in his life. He was a hairdresser and also an electrician, before joining exotic dance troupe Extreme Force, subsequently auditioning for The X Factor. Chico says he practised his singing most in the bathroom, and he grew up with Arabic and Indian music.

The X Factor

During The X Factor competition, Chico was mentored by manager Sharon Osbourne. Slimani's dancing impressed X Factor judges, and he was popular with viewers, but he failed to reach the final of the ITV talent show, being voted out in the penultimate episode. It was eventually won by singer Shayne Ward in December 2005. Slimani had originally planned to release his single, which he performed during the talent show, before Christmas. "I'm absolutely loving every minute of it, and looking forward to releasing the single at last," he was stated saying.

The ex-goatherd and stripper released his debut single, "It's Chico Time", in February 2006, entering the UK Singles Chart at #1 on 5th March 2006. He is taking part in a nationwide X Factor tour, which begins in Newcastle upon Tyne next month. "The whole thing has been unbelievable," the 34-year-old said.

Trivia

His height is 6' 1" (1.85 m).

Discography

Singles

"It's Chico Time" (2006) (Released 27th February, 2006) UK#1

External links

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