Simon Cowell's 10-second secret to spotting star potential in performers
Simon Cowell revealed how he can predict a singer’s success or failure within the first 10 seconds of an audition.
The 66-year-old British TV personality and record executive rose to global prominence when he served as a judge on the singing competition series, the U.K.'s "Pop Idol" and its mega-hit spin-off "American Idol," where he became known for his blunt critiques and ability to spot commercial talent quickly. Cowell went on to create the massively successful franchises "The X Factor" and "Got Talent" and helped launch the careers of major artists through his company Syco Entertainment.
During an interview with Fox News Digital, Cowell, who recently returned to the small screen with the new Netflix docuseries "The Next Act," explained why he sometimes stopped singers mid-performance during his past shows as he shared the green and red flags that he looks for in auditions.
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"If you've got an audience behind you, you feed off an audience's energy," he said. "Everything changes."
"When someone's not great, the audience is very quiet," Cowell continued. "When an act is fantastic, it can either get really loud or you have that perfect silence. So I've always learned to read an audience. Or certainly when you've got people around you. So when I was auditioning on the show, we had a lot of people in the room with us. And when someone did walk in, the whole energy changed."
Over the years, Cowell has helped transform previously unknown singers into global stars. On "American Idol," Cowell's commentary helped spotlight breakout talents such as Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood, while "The X Factor" provided a direct artist-development pipeline that produced acts like One Direction, Little Mix and Leona Lewis.
While speaking with Fox News Digital, Cowell shared what continues to drive his passion for star-making.
"I've always been a fan of finding people who normally don't have an opportunity, for whatever reason," he said. "You know, people who don't come with managers or don't have any connections, the people you go and search for."
"That's why we started these shows years ago for that reason because I always believe there's always somebody out there with tremendous talent, tremendous potential, who for whatever reason, just hasn't got a break," he continued.
The TV personality pointed to some of the shows' alumni including Grammy-winning pop star Clarkson, who was the season one winner of "American Idol," as well as One Direction and Lewis.
"I could read off so many examples and I suppose the common denominator was none of them really had that opportunity," Cowell said. "We gave them an opportunity. So that when it works, it's the best feeling in the world. I mean, I can't explain it. It's just the best. And I just love it."
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Throughout his stints as a judge, Cowell has been known for not holding back with his critiques of the contestants. His comments were direct, sometimes harsh and delivered without softening the blow.
Cowell has previously said that he believes that the contestants are better served by brutal honesty rather than sugar-coated feedback or unearned praise. During his interview with Fox News Digital, Cowell reflected on how he approached interactions with contestants after failed auditions.
"If I get to see them afterwards, I will go and talk to them and tell them why I didn't like them," he said. "Sometimes I can give them advice. I mean that there are times — I'm not gonna lie — where people come in and I'm thinking, 'Wow, I just don't see this happening to you because you're not singing well. I don't think singing lessons are gonna help.' And sometimes you've got to give people a different steer in life."
"I'm a great believer — you just don't bulls--- people,"Cowell continued. "I've learned that on a personal level when I was starting up in the music business. You know, it was tough, you know, and I kind of learnt to do my job well because people fortunately were the same with me. They were very, very, very blunt with me and told me whether I was doing something good or bad. And that's the way you learn. And that's when I decided eventually that I was gonna be on camera after doing this, I was like, 'Well, I'm not gonna lie to anyone. I've gotta be honest with them. Some people will appreciate it, other people not so much.'"
Cowell was a judge on "American Idol" for the show's first nine seasons from its debut in 2002 through 2010. Pop star and choreographer Paula Abdul and record executive and musician Randy Jackson formed the original judging panel alongside Cowell while Ryan Seacrest and Brian Dunkleman co-hosted the show.
Seacrest became the show's sole host in Season 2, and he continued in the role until the show's original run on Fox ended in 2016. Seacrest, who also took over as host on "Wheel of Fortune" after Pat Sajak's departure, returned to "American Idol" when the series was revived on ABC in 2018.
During a recent interview with the New York Times, Cowell noted that he and Seacrest "rarely talk now" and said that he "didn’t follow his career, so I don’t know what he’s done."
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While speaking with Fox News Digital, Cowell explained that there was "no specific reason" that he and Seacrest haven't stayed in touch.
"I think you just sometimes you drift apart, and that happens," he said. "I'm sure if we saw each other, you know, we'd have a lot to talk about."
"But just for whatever reason, probably 'cause I left the show and went on to something else, our lives just went in different directions. It was really nothing more than that."
Cowell recently debuted the six-episode Netflix docuseries "Simon Cowell: The Next Act," which he also executive produced. The show's logline reads: "Music mogul and record executive Simon Cowell has single handedly created some of the biggest music superstars in the world. In this brand-new Netflix docuseries, cameras follow him everywhere as he sets out to do it again, to try and create the next global boy band sensation. This is unlike any show he has made before. From raw open casting calls to the release of their debut single, this is an all-access pass for viewers to catch every moment of Simon’s next chapter. Will he strike gold once again?"
During his interview with Fox News Digital, Cowell explained what motivated him to launch "The Next Act."
"It was me missing working with groups actually," he said. "Genuinely missed it. I haven't done it for years. So I thought, 'Well, I'm gonna do it, so why don't we just film the whole process?' Just to give it a little bit more — actually a lot — more jeopardy. There was by the way. It was terrifying, but really rewarding, actually."
Cowell explained that the biggest challenges when it comes to building a successful band remain the same as when he first started in the industry.
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"You still gotta have hit songs, right," he said. "So that's always difficult. You know, finding those songs that you believe and pray are gonna resonate with people. So that's always my priority once you've signed a band."
"And then, equally important, if not, I should say the most important thing, is the fans," Cowell continued. "The fans at the end of the day, are a band's future. And if the fans like them, then you've got a shot. If the fans don't, you have no shot."
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Cowell also shared his thoughts on what he hoped audiences would take away from watching "The Next Act."
"It's really to show what it takes, certainly in terms of resilience, to be successful," he said. "It's not about sitting in your bedroom posting videos. There's way more to it than that."
"If you want to be a singer, you gotta really, really learn how to sing. What the business is about, you know, how difficult it is to get a deal," Cowell continued. "On the other side, it's understanding how I do my job. ‘Why do you like certain people beyond other people, what do you see in people?’ And I tried my best, when we made this show, I opened everything up so the viewer could see what I do and sort of play along with what I was doing. ‘Who would you select? Why would you select them?’" "So that was what we agreed to from day one. We were gonna open up cameras to everything."
"Simon Cowell: The Next Act" premiered on Dec. 10 and is available to stream now on Netflix. Cowell, James Gay Rees, Paul Martin, Warren Smith, Cassie Bennitt serve as executive producers for the show, with Tayla Richardson as co-executive producer. The series, which has six episodes, was produced by Box to Box Films and Syco Entertainment.