Simon Cowell on the prowl for next big boyband

Fourteen years after launching One Direction on The X Factor, music mogul and television personality Simon Cowell is looking for the UK’s next big boy band, embarking on a new project differing from the talent shows he is known for.

Cowell will hold auditions for 16-18 year-olds in Liverpool, Dublin and London over the summer in a bid to form megastars on levels not seen in Britain since the best-selling One Direction, who found fame on his televised singing competition The X Factor before parting ways several years later.

“Weirdly since One Direction, there hasn’t been a successful UK band, which I don’t understand why,” Cowell told Reuters in an interview.

“As an entry point into the music business, it’s by far the best route. Diana Ross became Diana Ross because she was in the Supremes. Beyonce became Beyonce ‘cos she was in Destiny’s Child.”

Unlike The X Factor, there will be no weekly televised shows or vote but a potential documentary series. “As a viewer, I’d find it more interesting, particularly if I was a performer, I’d really want to see why people get chosen and what is the process you go through,” Cowell said. “In my opinion, that’s never really been shown, certainly since I’ve been making these shows ... you see a side of it. I don’t think you really see the interesting part ... the highs and lows. And trust me, there are a lot of lows.”

The X Factor last aired in Britain in 2018. Once hugely popular, it had seen ratings fall over the years. “More people than you think watch these shows ... Now, of course, in different ways as well — on YouTube, TikTok,” Cowell said. “I think they’re still very popular.”

He said talent shows had a purpose, helping new artists get noticed. “Right now with the amount of songs that are being uploaded every day and the amount of artists that are breaking globally ... I think it’s something like two UK artists in seven years have broken globally ... which is horrendous.

“...A lot of these artists get their first break (on televised talent shows)... even their first audition if it goes out and goes viral, that is a step on the ladder.”

Asked if he would do anything differently now compared to his work with One Direction, Cowell said he would not change much. “I’m always very — ‘do what you want ... have fun’ ... I’m certainly not going to tell you what to wear. I might advise you as to what I think is the best record to put out,” he said.

In the last few years, K-pop bands such as BTS have become hit phenomena building global fan bases. “K-pop filled a void,” Cowell said. “So when I look at BTS filling out Wembley Stadium, you say, well, then of course there’s still a market for bands, possibly bigger than ever.”

Cowell, who said his ideal boy band are “people who know who they are”, started his search earlier this month. Asked what response he had received so far, he said: “You really don’t know until you turn up on the day ... If not enough people turn up or that I just don’t think they’re right, then we’re gonna have to keep going.”