Danyl Johnson Odds to Win X Factor 2009
Third Right Now to Win in Online Betting
Danyl Johnson, the teacher that emerged with one of the best auditions in X Factor history, is currently trailing Lucie Jones and Stacey Solomon as odds-on favorites to win the 6th season of X Factor. Lucie is about 4 to 1 to win now, Stacey is about 4.5 to 1, and Danyl is around 5 to 1. Jamie Archer is also about 5 to 1. These odds are based on actual betting in the various sportsbooks online, which mostly have similar odds. I believe these numbers are not an accurate reflection of what will really happen or the true odds of who will win X Factor 2009. In fact, I place Danyl Johnson as the odds-on favorite to win and Jamie Archer as a close second.
First, let's look at the competition. In my article on Stacey Solomon and her odds to win, I explained that mainly looks and personality and well-selected song choices have gotten her to this point. Yes, based on what we have seen, Stacey deserves her spot. But she has been coddled by the judges and not called out for her lack of versatility from what we have seen. The show needs her for ratings, so she has been given the best edit possible and not been criticized for obvious deficiencies. This edit is fairly unnoticeable by the voting public but will likely become more and more apparent as the weeks go by.
Next, let's look at Lucie Jones. I am positive that the UK voting public has to be smarter than this. Lucie has a good voice, but she is a wannabee Whitney Houston or Celine or pick whichever past star you want. She has no personal style despite what Simon claimed. Singing a song half as good as the original like she did with "I Will Always Love You" is not a style. It is an average performance. Although I am American, many of my favorite singers of all time are from the UK (Freddie Mercury, George Michael, etc.). Surely, the UK public is smart enough to see that Lucie is not a real artist. She is a karaoke singer through and through. If she wins based on what we have seen, artistry is even more dead than what I already thought.
Based on what I have seen, Danyl Johnson and Jamie Archer are far and away the best singers on this show. They each have some strengths and weaknesses as contestants, but a competition based on talent would have to put these two as the two favorites based on what we have seen so far in the competition.
Danyl Johnson is a great singer. To use the common phrase, he has "soul." Everthing from his initial performance of "I Get By With a Little Help From My Friends" to "I Keep Falling In Love" had a soul vibe to it. He also has stage presence. However, I do agree with Simon that he tends to go over the top at times. Nonetheless, that is how you set yourself apart as a singer and artist. Lucie has to rely on her good looks to try to distinguish herself. Danyl actually uses his performances to distinguish himself from the competition. The same could be said for Jamie. Dude is not relying on his hair only to set himself apart. He is picking a variety of different songs and making them just different enough but good and emotional at the same time to set himself apart.
Overall, though, Danyl seems to have a bigger stage presence and electrifies an audience a bit better than Jamie. On the other hand, Jamie seems a bit more genuine. At this point, I would actually place Jamie as my personal favorite because his emotion does seem more genuine and sincere than Danyl's seemingly "showy" routines. Jamie has also shown a more versatile vocal range.
I'd place Danyl as a favorite with about a 40% chance of winning, Jamie with a 20% chance of winning, Stacey with about 10%, Lucie with about 10%, and then the others with the scraps. Rikki Loney should be higher based on talent. Unfortunately, he just doesn't have the personality to be a favorite to actually win.
Now, what do I think will really happen? I honestly don't care. I've seen too many bad singers go deep in the shows since I started watching American Idol back in Season 3. I don't get serious about it because I know it's a popularity contest. But I do think that Danyl and Jamie are clearly the most talented contestants. One of them will probably get booted way too soon, and the other will have to get lucky and win the popularity contest. Either way, it's no skin off my back.
