Steve Brookstein
| Steve Brookstein | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Stephen Desmond Brookstein |
| Born |
10 November 1968 Camberwell, London, England |
| Genres | Jazz, blue-eyed soul |
| Occupation(s) | Singer |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Labels |
Syco (2004–2005) Pledge Music (2013–2014) |
| Website | stevebrookstein |
Stephen Desmond "Steve" Brookstein (born 10 November 1968 in Camberwell, London) is an English jazz and soul singer who enjoyed fleeting success in the United Kingdom in 2004 after winning the first series of The X Factor. He is originally from Mitcham, South London.
Brookstein was born in Dulwich, London, England, the son of Malle, a council worker, and Errol Brookstein, a lorry driver. His father is South African and his mother is of Estonian descent. In 1997, seven years before his breakthrough on The X Factor, Brookstein was a finalist on the ITV series The Big Big Talent Show, hosted by Jonathan Ross.
In early 2004, Brookstein auditioned for the first series of The X Factor, a new television talent show that aimed to discover a star recording artist in the UK (effectively replacing Pop Idol). His audition failed to impress two of the judges, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh, who thought he lacked the motivation and confidence to succeed but the third, Simon Cowell, asked Brookstein to return the following day and sing again. At the second audition, Brookstein managed to impress the other judges and was put through to the next stage of the competition. He went on to reach the live shows, where contestants are put to the public vote, as one of three contestants in the Over 25s category mentored by Cowell. He reached the grand final on 11 December 2004 alongside G4, and won despite him mixing up words and lines in his winner's song and a controversial outburst against him from Osbourne. However, according to Osbourne's subsequent autobiography, he had gained the most votes in every single one of the live shows. For five years, he held the record for the greatest number of votes ever received in the final - 6 million, but this is now held by series 6 winner Joe McElderry, who received over 6.1 million votes.
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