15 Years Ago, Beyoncé Won The X Factor

On December 13, 2008, a peak of 14 million viewers watched Alexandra Burke win The X Factor.

The reality-singing competition was at the time one of the biggest shows on UK television, regularly attracting celebrity duet performers like Rihanna, Christina Aguilera, and Kylie Minogue during the annual live finales.

But Beyoncé’s duet with eventual X Factor winner Burke stands out as one of the most memorable moments in the show’s 17-year history.

Bey joined the aspiring singer for a duet of her acclaimed 2007 hit “Listen” in the Season 5 final — a song that earned Queen Bey Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations.

Bey & Alexandra’s Duet

“Ladies and gentlemen, I absolutely cannot believe I’m about to introduce this woman to the stage,” Burke said through tears while introducing her A-list duet partner. “Please welcome my hero, Beyoncé.”

The pair finished the performance to a standing ovation from X Factor judges Simon Cowell, Cheryl Cole, Dannii Minogue, and Louis Walsh. Later in the show, Burke was crowned winner of the series, securing 58% of the final vote over that year’s runner-up, boyband JLS.

15 years later, their duet is remembered fondly by fans, attracting over 11 million views online to date.

“We Made It All Up On The Spot”

Burke looked back on the performance on the BBC’s The Noughties in 2020, sharing that X Factor maestro Cowell revealed her duet partner the night before the finale.

Recalling her first meeting with Bey, Burke remembered: “She walks in and she goes, ‘Nice to meet you, blah blah blah.’ I’m in tears, and I’m just crying the whole time.”

Burke added that, after shedding some tears herself, Beyoncé said they “really need to practice” her song “If I Were A Boy” — but Burke wasn’t convinced, and suggested they sing “Listen,” instead.

“I said, ‘You can take every verse you want, just give me a line, but can we sing a song that I know.’ We literally blagged it,” she continued.

“If you watch it back, we hold each other’s hands and you see us just going, ‘Your turn, okay my turn, okay your turn,’” Burke disclosed. “That’s how the song went. We made it all up on the spot.”