Hey, remember that time I tried out for X Factor?

A few weeks ago, Ian's sister notified me that UK X Factor auditions were happening in Glasgow. Literally ten minutes away. 


I agreed to do it as long as Ian also auditioned.

Unfortunately, Ian came down with a "sinus infection" that left his Johnny Cash song a little rocky, so he decided not to audition.

We woke up super early and got to the SECC by 7 AM. We lined up in the freezing cold, expecting to audition soon.

Boy were we wrong.

Instead of having everyone line up inside the convention center, they have everyone line up outside, in the  cold so they can get camera shots of the crowds.

They wanted us to scream, cheer and go crazy. All I did was shiver, roll my eyes, and avoid the second hand smoke from the people around me.

What was the best thing about this part of the experience?

 People watching.
             Glasgow always surprises me with its outlandish fashion. However, the people really outdid themselves for the X Factor! There were girls waiting outside for hours in tiny shorts and tank tops. There was a guy in a leather kilt and a man dressed like a monk. My favorite was a guy with multicolored sequins on his face (paired with gold, glitter platforms of course).

Lots of people.

Dermot O'Leary (UK's version of Ryan Seacrest!)

Big Scottish flag that was passed over the crowd.

The cheering that went on for hours.

The guy with the fantastic hair wore the leather kilt. He mooned the audience many times.

So, after six hours of cheering for the cameras, they finally let everyone inside to audition.

Basically they have probably twelve booths set up with one or two X Factor producers inside each booth. 

There was a kid in front of me that was auditioning for his fourth time. He said that I may not feel nervous now, but once I get in the booth it will seem very cold and my throat would close up. 

I think he was just trying to psych me out.

Anyways, I got into the booth to find two X Factor producers. They asked me where I was from, why I was in Glasgow, and what I was going to sing.

I sang It Will Rain by Bruno Mars. 

One of the producers said she "Loved to hear me sing," and asked me to sing another.

And they put me through to the next round.

I'm going to Hollywood...oh wait...that's American Idol.

So, that sounds great, right? Not so fast!

I showed up the next day for my audition and they asked if I had a work visa...oopsies. No visa, no singing for me.


 So, being an illegal alien for me and a "sinus infection" for Ian quickly put a halt on our X Factor experience.

It was a really, really neat experience, though. It definitely opens your eyes to what really occurs with programs like X Factor and American Idol. The people you see auditioning for the judges have actually probably been through five rounds of auditions...nuts!


XOXO-Kels