Britney Spears is no longer the only judge to still have her team intact on “The X Factor.” After another double elimination Thursday, in which she lost two of her teenage singers — fully half her team — in one night, she’s now strangely (even suspiciously) even with her fellow judges, who all have two acts left in the Top 8.Gone are the smooth teen soul singer Arin Ray, whose version of Enrique Iglesias’ “Hero” Wednesday got the least amount of votes, and Beatrice Miller, the seemingly fragile teen who sang Snow Patrol’s “Chasing Cars” Wednesday.
To add even more pressure on the youngster, she was put in a showdown singing contest with the next lowest vote-getter, CeCe Frey. Miller sang Dido’s “White Flag”; Frey chose Kelly Clarkson’s “Because of You.”
Judges get to pick who goes home, so Demi Lovato chose to keep her own act, CeCe; Britney chose keep her own act, Miller. But both L.A. Reid and Simon Cowell thought Miller should go home; Simon said he thought the competition was too much for her (so why’d he let her audition in the first place?).
They just about destroyed a little girl live on stage in season one of “The X Factor” so they’re probably careful not to cause that same kind of live TV trauma this time out. (Not that Rachel Crow, last season’s victim, is doing bad. She sang at the Macy’s Parade Thursday morning, something you couldn’t say about last year’s “X Factor” winner).
Besides, they weren’t about to get rid of CeCe, around whom the whole season seems to have been built.
The remaining singers are Carly Rose Soneclar and Diamond White for Britney; CeCe and Paige Thomas on Lovato’s team; Vino Alan and Tate Stevens on Reid’s group and Emblem3 and Fifth Harmony in Simon’s corner.