A Basingstoke singer took centre stage and fulfilled his ambition to perform at the O2 Arena in London.
Luke Upton sang in the Open Mic competition final before a packed audience at the Docklands arena on Saturday January 15.
The Basingstoke singer was runner-up in the 18 to 25 age category of the competition.
He was pitted against singers, rappers and musicians from across the country in a competition that saw thousands of entries narrowed down to 26 per category.
The 20-year-old from Western Way performed before a panel of judges that included Radio 1 DJ Ras Kwame and singer Dane Bowers.
Luke said: “It felt amazing to represent Basingstoke where I was born and bred.”
He sang Michael Buble’s Feeling Good in the final. He said it was his first choice because it was one of the first songs he performed live.
“It was always an ambition of mine to sing at such a prestigious venue like the O2,” he said.
“All the contestants were lovely and the day was actually really relaxed.”
He lost out to Brighton trio FranClassic, who scooped the 18 to 25 category and were voted the best overall act.
Luke, who attended Brighton Hill Community College, performed at the O2 after making it through the regional stages in November, performing at Portsmouth Guildhall.
The talented youngster got through to the bootcamp stage of the X-Factor in 2009, reaching the final 12 men out of 250,000 competitors.
He said it was after the good reception he got on the TV show that he realised there was a chance that he could go further and sing professionally.
He said: “It’s my dream to have a singing career, but it’s a fickle business and things can change.”
Luke, who described his music taste as eclectic, is a big fan of Elvis and The Script as well as Michael Buble.
He is now going to concentrate on up-coming performances in Basingstoke and wait to see what opportunities arise from Open Mic.
