Joe McElderry, the 18-year old British born performing arts student from South Shields, Tyne and Wear, in the UK, won the sixth series of the X Factor on Sunday 13th December, 2009. In landing the top prize of a £1,000,000 recording contract with Simon Cowell’s prestigious label, Syco Music, Geordie Joe had to beat fellow finalists 25-year old Olly Murs and 20-year old Stacey Solomon. 

Hailed as the ‘new’ Cliff Richard because of his squeaky-clean image and old-fashioned appeal, Joe McElderry developed his singing ability in local competitions. In 2007, he had his first experience of the X Factor when he entered the contest and successfully made it through to the Bootcamp stage. In 2008, Joe was named ‘Young Performer(s) of The Year (under 21s)’ at the annual Pride of South Tyneside Awards. In 2009, he entered the X Factor again with over 170,000 other hopefuls and the rest as they say, is history.

Joe McElderry’s first single off his debut album is The Climb which he first performed in the final of the X Factor 2009. Written by Jessi Alexander and Jon Mabe, The Climb is a song about following your dreams and not giving up (worked well for Susan Boyle!). Originally performed by American recording star and actress Miley Cyrus for the 2009 Walt Disney feature film Hannah Montana: The Movie, the song has been a popular choice among contestants on the ninth series of American Idol. It has also been featured in America’s Got Talent.

To buy your copy of the single The Climb, click here.

With the release of his debut single, this will be Joe’s second taste of chart success. Earlier in December, together with the other 11 finalists, Joe performed on a charity single recorded and released to raise money for Great Ormand Street Hospital. The song, a cover of Michael Jackson’s phenomenally successful ‘You Are Not Alone’, entered the UK Top 100 Singles chart at No. 1 and in the process helped raise thousands of pounds for this charitable organisation.  

Next year is going to a very exciting 12 months for young Geordie Joe. No doubt, he’ll be kept busy following his X Factor success and with the release of his first album.

To pre-order your copy of Joe’s first album click here.

YouTube Video: Joe McElderry Performing ‘The Climb’ In The Final of X Factor 2009.

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Joe McElderry, the X Factor winner, has admitted he is a virgin who is straight but does not have time to chase romance – and denied suggestions he fancied mentor Cheryl Cole.

Joe McEldery wins The X Factor with 61% of the vote.

Geordie teen Joe McEldery is still ‘pinching himself’ today following his landslide X Factor victory. The 18-year-old said being crowned winner last night was the ‘best experience’ in his life. He won a massive 61.3 per cent of the vote, compared to fellow finalist Olly Murs 38.7 per cent.

Joe McElderry wins X Factor.

Eighteen-year-old Joe McElderry has beaten Olly Murs to win the sixth series of the ITV talent show X Factor. The pair battled it out on primetime TV across the weekend to win a lucrative £1m recording contract.

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I Dreamed A Dream is the sensational debut album from Scottish singer Susan Boyle. The album released in Britain, America and Australia at the tail-end of 2009, entered the UK Top 100 Albums Chart at No. 1 Prior to it’s release, the cd had set a new record for global pre-order sales at online retail giant Amazon.

Released by Syco Music, the label founded and run by media mogul Simon Cowell, I Dreamed A Dream was crafted by award-winning producer Steve Mac. Steve Mac’s production credits include JLS, Il Divo, Ronan Keating, Leona Lewis and ITV’s I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! presenters, Ant and Dec (back in the late 90’s).

I Dreamed A Dream is a 12-song collection of mainly cover versions with one original recording, Who I Was Born To Be, written specially for Susan Boyle. The Scottish singer shows her extensive musical ability by singing songs previously recorded by Madonna (You’ll See), the Rolling Stones (Wild Horses) and The Monkees (Daydream Believer). Also included is Cry Me A River. Originally written for the legendary jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, Cry Me A River was first released in 1955 by American singer and actress, Julie London. Susan Boyle recorded a version of the song in 1999 for inclusion on a charity cd to commemorate the new Millennium. 

The 12 songs on the album are:

1. Wild Horses; 2. I Dreamed A Dream; 3. Cry Me A River; 4. How Great Thou Art; 5. You’ll See; 6. Daydream Believer; 7. Up To The Mountain; 8. Amazing Grace; 9. Who I Was Born To Be; 10. Proud; 11. The End of The World; 12. Silent Night.

The title track, I Dreamed A Dream, is from the hugely successful theatre musical, Les Misérables. The song has been covered by many great singers over the years including Neil Young, Michael Crawford and The Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. It was Susan Boyle’s powerful and heart-stopping rendition of this song in the first round of ITV’s Britain’s Got Talent earlier in 2009 that catapulted her straight into the hearts and minds of the world. Thanks to the wide spread global news and press coverage, the video of her performance was viewed by tens of millions of people on YouTube and she become a worldwide phenomenon.

With the release of this album, 48-year old Susan Boyle has fulfilled her greatest ambition. In the process, she has become a symbol of hope and an inspiration for the millions and millions of people who dare to dream.

To buy I Dreamed A Dream, click here.

To preview songs from the album, click here.

To read Amazon customer reviews, click here.

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YouTube Video: Susan Boyle Performing ‘I Dreamed A Dream’ On American TV (23/11/09)

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Susan Boyle’s Cinderella Story Proves The Power of Authenticity.

When I learned that Susan Boyle’s first recording was an instant best-seller, I began to think about what her startling rise indicates about these modern times.

Susan Boyle Gets An Incredible Makeover By Prestigious Style Bible Harper’s Bazaar.

The word makeover just doesn’t seem to do her justice. Because Susan Boyle is a lady transformed. And while diehard fans may insist she was fine just as she was, something about her smile says she won’t be going back to her old look.

The Man Who Turned Susan Boyle Into A Superstar – And It’s Not Simon Cowell.

It was another whirlwind week in the life of Susan Boyle. The Scottish singer wowed millions of US television viewers, smashed sales records for her debut album — and burst into tears at the Rockefeller Centre in New York. 

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