I’m sure it was a staple part of many of our childhoods to cram around the TV on a Saturday night to watch The X Factor, voting for our favourites, and rolling our eyes at something Simon Cowell said. Some of the biggest names in the industry during the 2010s came from the show. The most obvious group, of course, is One Direction, who, despite only coming third in their series, went on to be the biggest boyband in the world in the early 2010s.
Other acts including: Little Mix, JLS, as well as single acts like Olly Murs and James Arthur also became staple household names through The X Factor. Another show, The Voice continues into this decade, having put artists like Becky Hill in the limelight. But as we are fully enveloped in an era of social media, and songs that go viral on TikTok, are these talent shows still the place to make it as a singer?
The X Factor stopped airing in 2018, but its decline began well before that, with viewership declining as other rival talent shows like Strictly Come Dancing became more popular. Even shows that are still airing, like The Voice, also are not as popular anymore, with viewership declining in recent years. Gone seem to be the days where talent shows were the place to make it big if you were an aspiring artist. Instead, the general public are turning their attention elsewhere to find their new favourite artist, and artist awards seem to emulate this.
Alex Warren, Addison Rae and Sombr are three artists nominated for the 2026 Grammy award for Best New Artist, and they all have one thing in common; their music became famous through TikTok. Songs with a dance or that are a trending sound dominate the charts; creating a viral snippet of the song is becoming the most important part of musical creation. Social media is the new talent show platform.
Whilst social media may be more accessible for aspiring artists to try and get noticed, it does seem a shame to have lost the art of the Saturday night TV show. Watching them over the course of several weeks meant that you could build more of a connection to their music and style, rather than scrolling past a 30-second video. However, the music industry is adapting to the modern world, and with it will almost certainly come the death of musical talent shows.
“One Direction X Factor Live 121” by donkeyjacket45 is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0.