Stacy Frances intervew:
'X Factor's' Stacy Francis on Elimination: 'Obnoxious' Astro's Save 'Is a Hard Pill to Swallow'The Fox competition's newest eliminated singer weighs in on the 14-year-old M.C.'s behavior and reveals her regrets.November 18
2:04 AM PST 11/18/2011 by Jethro Nededog
From Day 1, Stacy Francis was a frontrunner for the inaugural X Factor title. When the single mother of two children appeared on the series premiere, she was filled with insecurity. But, she won the audience over with her story of self-doubt, telling executive producer and judge Simon Cowell, “I don’t want to die with this music in me,” and then releasing a rendition of “Natural Woman” that brought the audience to its feet.
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Over the course of the competition, she never really took her eye off the prize. She did, however, seem to have a conflict of identity. It didn’t help that she found herself in a storm of criticism that tried to make her out to be a fraud.
“It comes with it,” Francis says of the controversy after Thursday’s show. “You know, you have to build a thick skin. And this show has taught me how to be more of a fighter. You got to fight back. You can’t be a punk. You have to get yourself through it and you have to fight back. I didn’t always do that before.”
On Thursday night, Francis found herself fighting one more time to stay in the competition with fellow contestant, Astro. And despite the M.C.’s lack of sportsmanship, the judges voted 3-1 in favor of eliminating her.
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Francis spoke to a small group of reporters after the show and weighed in on Astro’s behavior, revealed her regrets, and discussed her plans for the future.
Did you understand what Astro was doing when he said he didn’t want to perform?
Stacy Francis: When he did it, I thought he was using it as a tool to amp up the audience. And I was standing there like, ‘Damn, he’s about to kill it.’ I thought it was like him pulling the ‘I’m just going to trick you all. We’re going to turn this around.’ But when he didn’t, I was like, ‘What! What just happened?’ So, I don’t know. He’s a true artist and some people get away with that. You know, America sometimes likes that cockiness, too. So, it’s kind of hard to tell. It’ll be interesting to see.
What are your thoughts on Astro’s behavior?
Francis: I’m very confused by Astro’s behavior, because I think in that moment you should be pleading for your life and not throwing it away. I think Simon likes a little rebellion and he might respect Astro a little bit for being so rebellious.
I don’t understand his behavior. I mean, he’s 14, and you can call him a teenager and give him an excuse. But, bad behavior is bad behavior. I think that he wasn’t gracious in that moment. And I think in the whole scheme of things, no matter what you have to be grateful.
What advice would you give him?
Francis: I would tell him to be a little more humble. I’ve lived 40 years to get here. And he’s 14 and he’s blessed to be so young. I don’t know if he’s as gracious as he should be or honored. He’s not honoring God for the blessing right now.
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