"The X Factor" hands judging over to the viewers
Now that Fox's "The X Factor" is down to 12 finalists, the judging has officially been handed over to viewers, who will have the task of narrowing down the finalists for Thursday's results show.
But, before the competition got under way, the judges announced that they felt they made a mistake last week when they chose their 12 finalists and decided to bring back Diamond White, bringing the number to 13 finalists.
The theme for the night was "movie night" and contestants - mentored by judges L.A. Reid, Demi Lovato, Britney Spears and Simon Cowell - belted out songs from the movies.
Britney Spears' Teens
Arin Ray sang Estelle's "American Boy" and received praise from all of the judges. Spears told Ray, "You owned it, you rocked it." Lovato said his performance left her "speechless."
Beatrice Miller sang a stripped-down version of the Goo Goo Dolls' "Iris." Despite some trouble she was having with her vocal chords , the judges liked her performance. "The tone of your voice sounds like a hit record," said Reid.
Diamond White sang her own rendition of Whitney Houston's "I Have Nothing," which brought Lovato to tears and caused Reid to say, "You know you brought it home."
Carly Rose sang Bruno Mars' "It Will Rain," earning unanimous praise from the judges. Spears remarked, "Nobody can follow that."
Demi Lovato's Young Adults
Paige Thomas sang Berlin's "Take My Breathe Away," but the judges were not into her theatrical performance. Cowell said, "It needed to go somewhere...to be incredible."
Jenell Garcia sang Joan Jett's "I Love Rock 'n' Roll," which also struggled to win over all of the judges. Reid called her performance a "parody" and Cowell wasn't into her new look, but Spears said it was "hot, hot, hot."
CeCe Frey sang Survivor's "Eye of the Tiger," but Cowell was not into the song choice calling it "horrible." Lovato stuck by her contestant and the song choice.
L.A. Reid's Over 25s
Vino Alan sang "When a Man Loves a Woman," which awed the judges. Lovato said she was left "speechless" and Cowell called him a "hero."
Tate Stevens put his country spin on Bon Jovi's "Dead or Alive" and won praise from all of the judges. "I think you have what it takes," Lovato said.
Jason Brock sang R. Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly," but the judges were not wowed by his performance. "I like you but I don't believe you could fly," Cowell said and both Spears and Lovato called it "predictable."
Simon Cowell's Groups
Emblem3 sang the Temptation's classic "My Girl" to the melody of One Direction's "What Makes You Beautiful," and the judges loved it. Spears told the boy band, "You owned it," and Reid called the performance "perfect."
Lyric145 did a hip-hop version of "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" from "Mary Poppins," but not all the judges agreed on how they felt. Reid said he hated it and Spears called it "intriguing."
FifthHarmony, the all girl group, sang Christina Perri's "A Thousand Years" and the judges liked their performance. Lovato called the group "powerful" and Reid said he was impressed with their singing.