If I walked in with one arm, that would have hit the headlines, says 'X Factor' reject
'X Factor' reject Lorna Simpson has blamed her early exit from the show on the limited airtime she was given by TV bosses in the initial stages.
The 26-year-old student from London was the first contestant to be voted out of the ITV competition by judges Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh, after a sing-off with Shelley Smith from the same over-25s category.
“They could have given me more airtime,” she said.
“I could have done everything I’m needed to do. But it’s how they portray everyone and they didn’t portray me the way who I am and what I do.”
“If I walked in an audition room with one arm, that would have hit the headlines. But I’m just a calm and collected person with a voice and I get on with everybody.
“I think they want a lot of entertainment as well, which I’ve been providing but you just don’t know (how it will be edited). If they’ve already favoured someone to win, that shows they have a decision in what’s to come so they lose who they need to lose.”
This is me pic.twitter.com/FNMMLflxoc
— Lushous Official (@LornaSimpsonX) October 10, 2013
Simpson added: “But they provided the stepping stone for me. There are highs and lows in everything but I was always ready for this. It was always a gamble and I knew what I was going in for, but it didn’t stop me because I love music.
“It’s just the way the cookie crumbles. I don’t have any control over the TV show, but I have control over where I go now.”
She said she understood why mentor Sharon Osbourne abstained from the vote, leaving the final decision with the other three judges.
“She was really nice. Sharon was like an auntie as a mentor. If you do something wrong, she smacks your bum and says: ’Get in line, Missus’. I just spoke to her a while ago and she’s really supportive,” she said.
Simpson admitted it was “difficult” facing Smith in the sing-off, and said: “We’ve been really close since boot camp and she really stood out from her group. She’s a genuinely lovely person and we were backstage, holding hands, thinking: ’We can’t believe this is happening’. But this is a TV show.”
The aspiring singer said her “journey” is just starting and she is glad the ITV show gave her a boost.
“I deserved to be on X Factor, but everyone has their time. Someone’s got to leave,” she said.
“I’m really grateful. I got what I wanted. I just wanted the world to see me and know that I’m a singer, I am who I am and I want to go on to making music, getting out there and conquering the world. Now is going to be the time I show the world who I am and what I do, and that I can be a pop star.”
Simpson added: “I’m using this as a way of putting myself out there and getting my ideas and message across, because there’s a space for me in this industry. I know I can do it.”
“I’ve been through things that are more than frustrating, that are against the odds for my dream. It’s never going to be easy for me – I have to graft, but I want to do that because this means everything to me. I’ve had a little taste of what it could be like, from being on The X Factor.”
