Highlights
- Don Philip's emotional audition on The X-Factor took a severe turn, revealing more than simply dangerous making a song.
- Philip accused the display of forcing him to reveal his sexuality, leading to severe emotional misery.
- Britney Spears later opened up about her discomfort as a judge on The X-Factor, in the end deciding it wasn't for her.
Shows like American Idol and The X-Factor thrive on the comedy of unflattering auditions. Whether it's a contestant's unhealthy making a song or over-the-top style alternatives, those shows have made entertainment out of unhealthy auditions virtually as much as good ones.
However, occasionally, a bad audition comes alongside that has no humor in it in any respect. Perhaps the singer is not acutely aware of their true making a song voice. Perhaps they're no longer in on the joke. Perhaps the scenario that performs out is extra severe than what the show is used to.
When Don Philip auditioned for The X-Factor in 2012, his audition made headlines. The reason why for this consideration needed to do with his prior connection to Britney Spears, who was once a pass judgement on on the display. There was more to his audition than what was aired, then again, and the drama did not prevent after he walked off the stage.
What followed put Philip in a war of words with the FOX network and leaked photos would later expose much more.
Don Philip Sang With Britney On Her Debut Album And Left His Failed 'X-Factor' Audition In Tears
In 1999, Spears' debut album "...Baby One More Time" introduced her career as a pop superstar. While the album featured a ton of hit singles, it was once a deep minimize, "I Will Still Love You," which was the focus of 1 explicit episode of The X-Factor in 2012.
Spears sang with singer Don Philip on the observe and while Philip's profession never appeared to take off, he attempted to reignite that career by auditioning for the show.
Prior to his audition, he stated that his duet with Spears used to be "the most amazing thing to my family and my life."
Philip persisted, "At that time I wasn't really ready to make music. I gave it my best. Since then, I've been doing more writing and producing, really trying to find my sound. I've had a lot of 'maybes,' a ton almost. This is my final chance, no more after this."
The cameras captured Philip's nerves as he awaited the alternative to take the stage and reunite with his former making a song partner.
"I don't know what the heck I'm going to say, it's scary. I hope she likes me," Philip mentioned. "I want her to know I appreciate her and everything she did for me. [But] I'm tired of hearing, 'Don Philip, the guy that did the duet with Britney,' I want to be 'Don Philip!'"
When Philip took the level, Spears in an instant identified him and told Simon Cowell about recording a song with him years ago. Philip then began making a song Beyoncé's "Halo," however it used to be a very shaky rendition. Based on the reactions of Spears, the target market, and her fellow judges, it didn't glance good for Philip.
Cowell then spoke up and stated, "I just have to give you the honest truth, the problem that you have is that you don't have a good singing voice."
Phillip then sought after to hear from Spears, who also made up our minds to be honest with Philip.
"I feel like through the years, maybe you’ve gone through a lot of hardship and battles," she began, "but your voice really isn’t up to the bar of the standards of The X Factor and what we want."
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Cameras then cut to Philip walking off the stage and breaking down later on.
"Did you see Britney's eyes?" Philip stated, crying. "I saw her face and feel I've hurt her."
Cowell can then be heard approaching Spears to ask if she was k. Spears replied, "That was hard... because I know what they’ve been through."
Philip was apologizing to Spears behind the scenes, announcing, "I'm so sorry Britney."
Don Later Accused 'The X-Factor' Of Bullying Him Into Revealing His Sexuality During His Audition
Following the airing of Philip's audition, it looked like he was once just extraordinarily disillusioned at disappointing Spears with his less-than-stellar singing voice. However, Philip revealed to Access Hollywood that there was actually more to the story.
According to Philip, The X-Factor audition that aired reduce out around ten mins of photos where he revealed he's gay.
"It was kind of a private thing they forced out of me," Philip stated. "I would say bullied out of me."
Philip instructed The New York Post that he used to be emotionally distraught after his audition.
"After that thing, I went home and had thoughts of (suicide). I was so destroyed that they set me up," he told the outlet.
- Philip additionally claimed that he did not want to talk about his sexuality on the display:
- "Backstage, I’d talked to the producers about what my secret was. And I mentioned that my secret was I was gay, but I really didn’t want to talk about it on the show. So, minutes later, when I got on stage, L.A. Reid said, ‘What’s the secret? What’s the secret?’ over and over again. And I had to say it," Philip explained. "I just felt like they were going to say it, so I felt like I needed to say it first. And, I was just so emotionally distraught, I couldn’t pull it together to actually sing."
FOX, the network which aired The X-Factor , launched a statement following Philip's allegations.
"The judges were not given any information at all about Mr. Philip prior to his audition. The personal information that Mr. Philip quickly volunteered at the start of his audition was a surprise to the judges, who asked what had happened during the past 10 years, as they were interested in Mr. Philip’s career."
"While we understand his decision to discuss his personal life, Mr. Philip’s sexual orientation was not something that any of the judges or producers felt was relevant to this audition," the observation learn. "When advertising and promoting open auditions, thousands of people are informed about the ways to enter the show. Mr. Philip himself chose to enter for a chance to win a five million dollar recording contract."
Years later, Philip's full audition leaked online. The unedited model showed Philip visibly nervous at the start and stuttering while attempting to answer the judges' questions. It also confirms Philip's account of his alternate with L.A. Reid.
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Philip also revealed right through his audition that he heard a rumor Spears knew of his sexuality and didn't settle for it. He said this made him even more scared to come out. When he mentioned this, Spears mentioned, "I think it's fine that you're gay."
However, Philip used to be chastised by the judges for making Spears "uncomfortable" and Cowell informed him that what he said used to be "inappropriate." This may just additional provide an explanation for his emotional breakdown afterward.
Britney Revealed Why She Didn't Like Being An 'X-Factor' Judge In Her Memoir
After the finish of the 2012 season, it used to be announced that Spears wouldn't be returning to the show. In her 2023 memoir, "The Woman In Me," Spears opened up about her time on The X-Factor and why she left the show after one season.
She wrote, "Feeling like I needed more direction, I decided to go back to work. I tried to occupy myself by being productive. I began appearing on more TV shows – including, in 2012, as a judge on The X Factor."
Spears went on to praise her contemporaries like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani, who had judging stints on The Voice. However, while Spears believed they had been herbal judges, she published she did not assume it was the right thing for her.
"I think a lot of people are really professional on TV, like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani," Spears wrote. "When the camera’s on them, they thrive. And that’s great. I used to be able to do that when I was younger, but again, I feel like I age backwards when I‘m afraid. And so I got to where I was very, very nervous if I knew I had to be on air, and I didn’t like being nervous all day long."
Spears then mentioned that she believes she would be higher suited for a "fun TV show where I’m in and out in a day."
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She added, "Maybe I’m just not cut out for that anymore. I’ve accepted that now and it’s okay. I can tell people who try to push me in that direction no. I’ve been forced into things I didn’t want to do and been humiliated. It’s not my thing at this point."
Spears stated that she didn't like having to "act skeptical for eight straight hours while judging on TV."
"Uh, no thank you. I absolutely hated it," she concluded.
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