'X Factor': Alisha Bennett
Monday, November 19 2007, 12:39 GMT
By Nick Levine, Entertainment Reporter
The comeback kid is no more. Alisha Bennett gamely took to the X Factor stage on Saturday surrounded by the shakiest skaters this side of an under tens' roller disco, but her gutsy rendition of 'Young Hearts Run Free' wasn't enough. Dannii Minogue picked up on "a few flat notes", Simon Cowell branded the performance a "complete and utter disaster", and the 23-year-old Londoner wound up in the bottom two for the third time in five weeks. This time, the judges chose not to save her. We hooked up with the thwarted hopeful to find out how she's dealing with the end of her X Factor journey.
How are you bearing up today?
"I'm OK actually. It's all sunk in and I'm back to normal now. I don't want to dwell on it, and I want to try and turn a negative into a positive, you know."
Were you surprised to be in the bottom two this week?
"Not really. I prepared myself to go every week and, with my history on the show, that was no bad thing! I was always ready for it, and actually I was thinking I might volunteer to be in the bottom two this week... only joking!"
You wound up in the bottom two three times in five live shows. Did that knock your confidence at all?
"Definitely. It made me question whether I was right for the competition and whether I was good enough for the competition. So many things go through your mind when that happens."
But you always managed to pull it together and bounce back?
"Definitely. I really feel that I was growing each week. Niki, Beverley and Rhydian have such stage presence and deliver every week on the show, but people like me and Leon are constantly growing because we don't have quite as much confidence."
Your performance on Saturday caused a bit of controversy among the judges. What did you think of the rollerskating dancers?
"Oh I know! When I was given my routine on Tuesday, I went to the dance studio and Brian Friedman said to me: 'Great! You got skaters!' I didn't want to question Brian Friedman, and I was thinking more about what I was doing, not what the dancers were doing. I don't blame anybody, but it just didn't work."
Did you find them distracting?
"Definitely not. When I get up and perform, I get in the zone. That's something I've learned on the show. Maybe a few weeks ago I would have been distracted by them, but not this week."
Simon said Sharon should have axed the skating from the performance. Do you agree with him?
"Well, no. It's true what Sharon said on Saturday - Simon does have the overall hand on everything. For him to say something like that was, you know, a bit of a conspiracy. He watched my rehearsals on Friday - he was there - so if he didn't like it then, he should have spoken up more. But it's neither here nor there really; it's all done now."
Did Sharon have much input into your performance
"Do you know what, she picked my songs, but all she could do was mentor me and tell me how to better my performance and how to own the stage. Overall it's Simon's show and people do forget that."
Do you feel you received enough mentoring from Sharon?
"Oh definitely. Sharon's a very tough lady and she was probably the best mentor for me on a personal level, because I'm a bubbly person and I speak my mind. We worked really well together."
Did you ever argue with her?
"Course not. I was a bit of a cow when I got my songs sometimes, but I'd call her up and she'd just say 'Oh, you'll be fine!'. When you're in this situation, you trust these people because they've been in the business so long. Even though Simon said I was flat on Saturday, I still respect him because he's a good businessman, you know."
Which song choices did you kick up a fuss about?
"I absolutely hated 'Dreams', and I also hated 'Put Your Records On' because I didn't feel that it was me, but people have told me they loved the performance, so you just don't know."
Did you learn much from your time on the show?
"Learn much? I've learned so much about how TV works, and I've learned about myself too. Before the show I didn't know what kind of artist I wanted to be, but when you get put on a show like The X Factor, you really find out who you are. It's made me so much stronger and more confident - I'm not afraid to make love to the camera now! Who knows what I'd have been like if I'd made it to the finals?
What are your plans for the future?
"Well, I've already had a meeting with my agent and he wants to get me some gigs straight away, so hopefully I'll be able to get the ball rolling. Obviously I've got the X Factor tour to look forward to, but I really want to make music my career in the long term. My old job's been kept open for me but I don't want to go back to it. I don't want to look back on my life and say 'shouldawouldacoulda'."
Finally, who are you tipping to win the show?
"Definitely Rhydian. He's one of those people who's so focused and he just doesn't care what people think of him. He's so comfortable in his own skin that he's not afraid to do the camp thing. I'd like to see Beverley or Leon win, because they genuinely are nice people who don't believe in themselves. May the best girl, guy or group win - I wish all of them luck!"
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