Читать книгу Harry Styles & Niall Horan: The Biography - Choose Your Favourite Member of One Direction - Sarah Oliver - Страница 21
ОглавлениеAfter rehearsing for three weeks, some people might think that flying out to Spain was a treat for the boys – but they weren’t going on holiday. The flight was nerve-wracking, but exciting at the same time. They had put so much time into turning themselves into a group but they knew that the seven other groups flying out with them were all desperate for a place in The X Factor finals, too.
The lads couldn’t get over how luxurious Simon’s rented villa in Marbella was; it had an incredible 20 bedrooms, a home cinema and three swimming pools. They didn’t let it distract them from what they were doing, though; they had come to Spain to put on an amazing performance and they only had one chance to impress Simon with the song he had picked out for them.
Harry and the boys were aware that Simon would be looking for the whole package, so they needed to look good. They had combined their individual styles to create a unified look that complemented each member, with all of them wearing grey or white pumps, casual three-quarter length trousers or shorts and loose-fitting shirts or T-shirts. Their clothes were a combination of blue, white and brown; no one stood out in bright colours. Harry wore a scarf and Niall had a buttoned-up shirt, just as in their first auditions. (Poor Louis had a sore foot after being stung by a sea urchin and so he ended up wearing flip-flops for the performance!)
When Louis was stung while they were at the beach, he was rushed to hospital, leaving Harry and the others to rehearse on their own. They had no idea whether he would be back in time for their performance in front of Simon, so they had to consider that it might just be the four of them. ‘We’re all panicking a little bit ’cos we’re not sure what’s going to happen or when he’s going to get here,’ Zayn admitted to the X Factor cameras that day. Liam added: ‘For us that’s really bad as we haven’t had that much time to practise as we’ve only just got together as a group. I hope he’s back as we really do need him.’
Of course Harry and the others would have been able to put in a performance without Louis but it wouldn’t have been as good. Thankfully, he was dropped off at the villa just in time. The boys rushed over to their bandmate and gave him a big hug before carrying him inside. Together they walked confidently to the performing area, which was by one of the swimming pools. Simon was seated under a parasol with former 80s pop star Sinitta. She was helping him to choose the acts that he should put through to the live shows. The reunited five-piece performed the Natalie Imbruglia classic ‘Torn’: Liam sang the first verse brilliantly and then Harry nailed the chorus. Niall and Louis harmonised perfectly and Zayn finished off. It was a group effort, but each one performed wonderfully; it was as though they’d been singing together forever.
As soon as they’d finished, Simon said thanks and they walked off, thanking the guitarist and keyboard player as they passed them. Once they’d gone, Simon told his helper Sinitta, ‘They’re cool, they’re relevant.’ He could tell they’d been a bit nervous but he’d been impressed with how well they’d sung.
Harry summed up how they were all feeling, telling the camera: ‘Your hunger for it grows and grows as you get through each stage in the competition. It’s just the biggest stage to be told “yes” or “no”… it’s one word that can change your life forever because it won’t be the same if you get a “yes”, and if you get a “no”, then it’s straight back to doing stuff that kind of drives you to come here in the first place.’
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Here are the groups One Direction were competing against and the songs Simon chose for them to sing:
Husstle sang ‘Tainted Love’ by Soft Cell
The Reason sang Daniel Bedingfield’s ‘If You’re Not The One’
FYD sang ‘Beggin’’ by Madcon
Diva Fever sang ‘Love Machine’ by Girls Aloud
Twem sang Kelly Rowland’s ‘When Love Takes Over’
Belle Amie sang George Michael’s ‘Faith’
Princes & Rogues sang ‘Video Killed The Radio Star’
Some of the groups who had been favourites to go through didn’t impress Simon and Sinitta in their performances, whereas others, like One Direction, had excelled. Picking the top three to go through was very difficult.
After considering the options, Simon made his final decision and called in each group, one at a time, to let them know whether they would be going to the live shows or going home. When it was One Direction’s turn, Harry led the way, with the others following behind him. They all lined up next to each other, their arms around each other’s shoulders for support and in a sign of unity. ‘Do you understand why I did this in the first place?’ Simon asked. ‘Yes,’ they replied. ‘I think it’s because once we got through to the bootcamp stage, there were weaknesses, which is why we made the decision about all of you individually,’ he continued. ‘To a point, you came in at a disadvantage because you didn’t have the time the other groups had. On the more positive note, when it works, it worked.
‘My head is saying it’s a risk and my heart is saying that you deserve a shot. And that’s why it’s been difficult. So I’ve made a decision, guys – I’ve gone with my heart, you’re through!’
The boys started screaming and then had a massive group hug. They had done it! Harry couldn’t contain his excitement and leaving the others, ran over to hug Simon, closely followed by Niall and Zayn, Louis and Liam; Harry even had tears in his eyes again, only this time they were tears of happiness rather than rejection. Simon told them, ‘I am so impressed with all of you; I mean that.’
The boys were so excited, but they had to take care not to upset the groups who had just been told they weren’t good enough and were going home. Harry couldn’t wait to ring and tell his excited family the good news: they were going to be performing every Saturday night, with 11 million people watching at home! They were one step closer to landing a recording deal.
