Andrea Faustini
 |
Andrea Faustini | |
|---|---|
| Born | 17 June 1994 Rome, Italy |
| Genres | |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | 2009 –present |
| Labels | RCA Records |
Andrea (Gaz) Faustini(born 17 June 1994) is an Italian singer. He is best known for his role as a contestant on the eleventh series of The X Factor in 2014.[1] In 2015, Faustini released his debut studio album, Kelly, which peaked at number 14 on the UK Albums Chart.
Career
2009: Ti lascio una canzone
In 2009, at the age of 14, Faustini appeared on the Italian show Ti Lascio Una Canzone (Leaving You a Song),[2]
2012: First single
On January that year, Andrea published "Per me e per te" written by Mariella Nava. Produced by Cantieri Sonori. The song and music videoclip are released in Italian.[3]
2014: The X Factor
Faustini, who sang The Jackson 5's "Who's Lovin' You" for his first audition was well received by the four judges present that day. Simon Cowell even commented that Faustini "could be really special" in the competition, before receiving a "yes" from all of the judges. Faustini was part of the 114 other acts who successfully got through the Arena Auditions at the SSE Arena in London that year. Together with other male contestants up to the ages of 25, he was later placed into the "Boys" category, mentored by Mel B. Faustini got through the "six-chair challenge" during bootcamp, replacing Hayden Leeman, who had initially been given a seat for his rendition of Joan Jett's "I Love Rock 'n' Roll".[4] Faustini's performance of Whitney Houston's "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" during bootcamp moved judges Mel B and Cheryl Fernandez-Versini to tears[5] as well as earned him praises from Louis Walsh and Cowell. For judges' houses, Mel B brought the "Boys" category to Cancún[6] where Faustini performed Jennifer Hudson's "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" for her and fellow Spice Girls member Emma Bunton. Faustini was one of the four finalists selected to perform at the live shows which began on 11 October 2014.[7]
Faustini performed Michael Jackson's "Earth Song" for the first live show, and quickly became the bookies' favourite to win the show. He was in the bottom two in week 7 with Stevi Ritchie and was saved by Mel B, Fernandez-Versini and Walsh and only Cowell voted to eliminate Faustini. However voting statistics revealed that Ritchie received more votes than Faustini meaning if Walsh sent the vote to deadlock, Ritchie would've been sent through to the quarter-final and Faustini would've been eliminated. Faustini was once again in the Final Showdown in the semi-final with Lauren Platt, but was saved again with only Fernandez-Versini voting to eliminate Faustini. However voting statistics revealed that Platt received more votes than Faustini meaning if there wasn't a Final Showdown and if Walsh or Cowell voted to send Platt through to the final or if the result went to deadlock, Platt would've been sent through to the final and Faustini would've been eliminated. Faustini ended up finishing third, behind runner-up Fleur East and winner Ben Haenow.[8]
| The X Factor performances and results (2014) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Stage | Song | Theme | Result |
| Room audition | "Who's Lovin' You" | Free choice | Through to arena |
| Arena audition | "Try a Little Tenderness" | Free choice | Through to bootcamp |
| Six Chair Challenge (Bootcamp) | "I Didn't Know My Own Strength" | Free choice | Through to Judges' houses |
| Judges' houses | "And I Am Telling You" | Free choice | Through to Live Shows |
| Live week 1 | "Earth Song" | Number ones | Safe (1st) |
| Live week 2 | "One Moment in Time" | 80's Night | Safe (1st) |
| Live week 3 | "Listen" | Saturday Night at the Movies | Safe (1st) |
| Live week 4 | "Relight My Fire" | Fright Night (Halloween) | Safe (2nd) |
| Live week 5 | "Somebody to Love" | Michael Jackson vs. Queen | Safe (2nd) |
| Live week 6 | "Summertime" | Big Band | Safe (4th) |
| Live week 7 | "I Have Nothing" | Whitney Houston vs. Elton John | Bottom two (6th) |
| "Stop!" | Free choice | Safe (3/4 majority vote) | |
| Live week 8 | "Chandelier" | Song chosen by Sam Smith | Safe (2nd) |
| "Hero" | Song chosen by the public | ||
| Live week 9 | "O Holy Night" | Christmas Songs | Bottom two (4th) |
| "Wrecking Ball" | Song to take you to the final | ||
| "Who You Are" | Free choice | Safe (3/4 majority vote) | |
| Live week 10 | "Feeling Good" | Free choice | Third Place (22.2%) |
| "Ghost" | Celebrity Duet (with Ella Henderson) | ||
2015: Kelly
22 February 2018 it was announced that Faustini had signed a record deal with RCA Records and would be going to Los Angeles and Tamworth to record his debut album at Ventura Park Matatlan, due for release later in 2018[9] His debut album Kelly was released on 17 July 2015.[10]
Mister Felicitá
Andrea takes part in the original soundtrack written by Umberto Gary Scipione (music and lyrics), singing the two original songs, "Our nights" and "Rhapsody",[11] for the italian film "Mister Felicità"
Discography
Albums
| Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [12] |
SCO [13] |
IRE [14] | ||
| Kelly |
|
14 | 29 | 89 |
Singles
| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK | SCO | IRE | |||
| "Give a Little Love" | 2015 | — | — | — | Kelly |
Soundtracks
- "Our nights" for Mister Felicità (2017)
- "Rhapsody" for the film Mister Felicità (2017)
Music videoclips
- Per me e per te
- Give a little love
References
- ^ "mirror". mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
- ^ [1]
- ^ [2]
- ^ "mirror". mirror.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
- ^ "huffingtonpost.co.uk". huffingtonpost.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
- ^ "metro.co.uk". metro.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
- ^ "andrea-faustini.com". andrea-faustini.com. Retrieved 2014-10-14.
- ^ Kara O'Neill (13 December 2014). "X Factor final: Andrea Faustini is ELIMINATED and thanks Mel B for being 'an amazing friend'". mirror.
- ^ Ingham, James (22 February 2015). "X Factor finalist Andrea Faustini signs record deal in LA". Daily Star. Northern & Shell. Retrieved 24 February 2015.
- ^ Lee, Ben (2 June 2015). "X Factor's Andrea Faustini announces debut album Kelly for July". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Retrieved 2 June 2015.
- ^ [3]
- ^ "Andrea Faustini> UK Charts". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Chart Archive > 24 July 2015 - 30 July 2015". Official Charts Company.
- ^ "Chart Archive > 23 July 2015". Irish Recorded Music Association.