The X Factor: A Study in Unstable Teens Under Pressure

Simon Cowell has stated unequivocally and often during this season of The X Factor that he is glad they lowered the minimum age for contestants to 12. He cites the talent of young contestants like Rachel Crow, 13; Drew, 14; Astro, 14; and Melanie Amaro, 19 as proof that this is a teenager's competition.

However, there has proven to be a somewhat cringe-inducing downside to putting oddball teenagers in a high-stakes talent competition on national television. They seem to keep having breakdowns.

First to crack was young hip-hop prodigy Astro, who was voted into the bottom two early in the competition. Astro seemed to be a young man with an overabundance of precocious confidence. In his initial audition, he pretended to scold Simon for being rude as a set up to his original song, "Stop Looking at My Mom". No one else was in on the joke, and there were several moments of stunned anger from the judges' table before everything clicked. In the end, the stunt paid off, and the judges unanimously praised the young rapper.

This cool persona remained unbroken until Astro's first appearance in the bottom two, when his youth really began to show. He walked out to his save-me song obviously upset and threatened not to perform at all before giving a lack-luster performance. When asked about his attitude, Astro first stonily avoided eye contact before tearfully explaining that he did not want to perform for an audience that did not want him. Suddenly, it was all too clear that Astro's cool, confident, and mature exterior was masking a lot of little-boy insecurities.

The next week, Astro apologized and gave a performance that kept him safe, but he was voted off after receiving the lowest number of votes during Michael Jackson week.

Next to have a bizarre break down on live TV was Miss Melanie Amaro. Melanie has been a strong contestant from the beginning due to her pitch-perfect diva voice and inoffensive demeanor. Early in the season, we were made aware of Melanie's family's history of money issues. Melanie spent some time living with her grandparents in the Virgin Islands when her parents could not take care of her.

Despite her somewhat difficult past, Melanie's personality seemed pretty muted, and she showed very little emotion. That is until rock week, when Melanie sang R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts". At the conclusion of her performance, with the crowd still on their feet, Melanie began thanking her mentor Simon Cowell for bringing her back in the competition after stupidly sending her home after the judges' houses round. This was a nice moment because it seemed Melanie was finally coming out of her shell, but it did not stop there.

As L.A. Reid began giving his comments, Melanie started to cry and began shouting in a previously hidden Islands accent about how she wanted to be herself. "This is the real Melanie," she cried, "This is really me." As the judges continued to try to give their feedback, Melanie continued to interrupt in her new voice to thank the judges, the audience, and anyone else who would listen, for the opportunity to compete on The X Factor. She was tearful and breathless and suddenly full of some bizarre, insuppressable energy. It was honestly difficult to watch.

I am not going to post a link to Melanie's odd transformation here because Fox is really good about getting videos down quickly. However, I suggest you search "Melanie Amaro accent" when you are done reading this. Melanie is still going strong and part of the final five in the competition.

Finally, we have little Drew. Drew charmed the judges with her Sarah-Mclachlin-gone-country voice and her sweet, creative take on current hits. She was a very strong contestant from the word go. However, as the weeks went on, Drew began to receive criticism from some of the judges for being too stagnant. Each week, she performed a slow, airy song. In time, all of the judges save Simon were practically begging for an uptempo song from her.

One week, the contestants were asked to dedicate a song to a person who had had a big impact in their lives. Drew chose her best friend Haley, whom she claimed was the only person who really understood her. Apparently, Drew often felt like an outcast and a loser at school. Haley was the girl who told Drew not to worry about what other people thought. In honor of their friendship, Drew sang Demi Lovato's "Skyscraper", a song about not letting others tear you down and a tween anti-bullying anthem. When L.A. accused Simon of picking 40-year-olds' songs for Drew, Drew spoke up, explaining in a cracking voice that the song was for anyone who has ever felt like they weren't good enough.

Fast forward to the Michael Jackson week results show, where Drew found herself in the bottom three. As a result, she would have to sing head-to-head with resident Bobby-Brown-type Marcus Canty. As soon as Drew learned that she was in the bottom, she began to cry as hard as I have ever seen anyone cry on TV. I'm talking about sobbing, snotty, tears-streaming-down-the-face crying. Also trembling.

As one might predict from all the trembling and sobbing, Drew's save-me performance was not her best. Still, I believe that the judges should have kept her around. Simon took credit for the mistakes they had made when picking songs and asked the other judges to give Drew another shot. However, the other judges all chose to save Marcus, and Drew was sent home. Upon learning this news, Drew opened up another level of waterworks. Leaning on Simon and bawling, she looked ready to fall over. When she hugged Marcus Canty in congratulations, her sobbing could be heard on his mic.

When asked for her final comments, Drew did something a little bit odd. "Jesus loves all of you," she sobbed. "That's why I'm really doing this, and now I'm going to say it." In the midst of a bawling breakdown, Drew found the guts to own up to her religious convictions.

I'm not sure where Drew got the impression that she could not talk about Jesus earlier. Perhaps it was an alienate-no-voters strategy that she and Simon came up with. Given the recent winners of similar shows (ultra-conservative Scotty McCreary, anyone?) I don't think I would have given her that advice. I'm glad she got to declare her love for JC before she went home, but all the crying was really, really hard to sit through.

So, have we learned anything? Not really. The youngest contestant, Rachel Crow, is still in the competition and as sunny as ever. Other shows, like American Idol, have had a plethora of teenage contestants without any painful moments. Still, for some reason, The X Factor has become a showcase for unbridled, hormonal emotions, and I blame all those damn kids.