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When The X Factor USA premiered seven years ago on September 21, the world was re-introduced to Stacy Francis. Stacy auditioned in Los Angeles in front of 4,300 audience members and a judging panel of world-renowned megastars in the music industry, namely Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, Cheryl Cole and L.A. Reid.
Hailing from New York, Stacy had relocated to Los Angeles 12 years prior to the audition stating that she “sort of got stuck… I’ve been living for 12 years believing I’m too old”. Preceding her audition, an emotional Stacy explained how an ex-partner’s abuse had hindered her success in her singing career and, once on stage, said “I don’t want to die with this music in me, Simon”.
The premier saw a staggering 12.5 million home viewers tuned in on the day her audition aired. Singing Aretha Franklin’s “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman”, Stacy delivered a soul-stirring, hair-raising, tear-jerking performance that totally brought the house down. Belting the most powerful, sky-high notes imaginable, Stacy received a standing ovation from all four judges and a deafening applause from the audience. An astounded Simon Cowell told her that “that was one of the best auditions I have ever heard in my life”. To date, her audition has been viewed more than 90 million times on YouTube.
Upon arrival at Bootcamp, Stacy’s stepfather had passed away. Through the agony inflicted by his passing, she went on and conquered all three rounds of Bootcamp, singing “A Song for You”, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking for” and “Summertime”, respectively. It was during this time that show-judge Cheryl Cole was replaced by Nicole Scherzinger. Stacy’s solo performance of “Summertime” brought upon tears universally with L.A. Reid remarking “That’s pain. That is deep, deep pain”.
During Week 5 Stacy performed at Nicole Scherzinger’s house in front of superstar Enrique Iglesias. Having been assigned Prince’s smash-hit “Purple Rain”, Stacy altered the song to add a soulful/gospel flavor to it. Stacy produced a record-breaking performance with gut-wrenching emotion and power from another dimension. Opening the song, her low notes were full and strong and introduced an unanticipated high-powered, thunderous range of belts, dominating and surpassing every soprano’s potential. The New York Times’ description of her voice accurately encapsulates this, saying that she has “a range that runs from chesty depths to unearthly heights”.
Unsurprisingly, Stacy was advanced to the first live show for the Top 17 performances where she sang “One More Try”. The live shows brought on a complete makeover for the powerhouse and the loudest audience cheers. Simon praised her for her Top 12 performance when she sang “Up to the Mountain” saying that “it was real, fantastic and one of the best performances of the night”. Referencing Stacy’s ground-trembling notes in the early part of the third octave, Paula complimented the bottom-end of her range saying that “it fills the entire room”.
Live show 3 was themed “songs from movies” and Stacy performed the classic hit “Queen of the Night” from The Bodyguard soundtrack. Ripping up the stage in her candy-red platforms, she brought sexy back with blazing dance moves and superior vocals. With acquiescent dancers, stage props and riveting choreography, the arena was filled with ear-splitting cheers and applause.
Rock Week saw a strong performance of “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” despite Stacy’s inability to hear the musical instruments over the audience’s clamorous praise. With Nicole tweeting the incorrect number to vote for Stacy, our diva landed in the bottom 2. Concluding her time on The X Factor USA was her heart-rending performance of “Amazing Grace” in her final showdown sing-off against fellow contestant Astro.