SIMON COWELL'S NEW BOYBAND SHOW WILL BE 'UNRECOGNISABLE' FROM X FACTOR AS AUDITIONS START

Simon Cowell is set to revolutionise auditions for his new boyband, aiming to surpass the success of One Direction, with a format that will be starkly different from X Factor - he's stripping back the entire production.

The 64 year old music tycoon, who earlier this year launched his latest campaign with the slogan "Simon Needs You", is kicking off his fresh talent hunt in Liverpool this weekend, after cancelling his first two originally scheduled dates in Gateshead. Insiders working closely with him have hinted that contestants are in for a surprise when they finally see the audition set-up.

One insider revealed: "These auditions will not look like The X Factor in the slightest - no shiny desks, big productions or celebrity guests. It will be incredibly stripped back. Simon has assembled a team of real experts - songwriters, producers and AandR people - who he really trusts. Together they'll be chatting to the talent and trying to work out who should go through."

The docu-series, which is yet to be associated with a channel or streaming giant, is being produced by Box 2 Box Productions. The company's most recent hit was Netflix's Formula 1: Drive to Survive.

The source further explained that Simon's show will follow a similar format, reports the Mirror.

They elaborated: "The idea is to capture that same sense of pressure behind the scenes - what the contestants are going through. And also the pressure Simon will be under to create a band that really have an impact, and achieve that standard he is looking for. He knows better than anyone what he is aiming for when he is talking about a band bigger than One Direction."

Earlier in the year, speaking about the project, Simon conceded that there's no guaranteed record deal with a label for the show. Instead, the team must pin their hopes on the winning act's star quality to attract a label's attention.

In an exclusive chat, he confessed: "It's a risk."

Addressing the current demand for talent shows within the industry, he added: "It's such a crowded marketplace and there are so many people trying to get attention online - hundreds of thousands if not millions of people. What these shows do is you get a bigger audience. I would argue there is a bigger need for these shows than 10,20 years ago."

2024-07-03T20:35:44Z dg43tfdfdgfd