Alexandra Burke

Alexandra Burke always seemed destined to be a star after entering UK TV talent show Star For A Night when she was just 12 and although she was beaten (by Joss Stone) from that point she never wanted to do anything else but sing. "Music is what I was born to do" she says. She initially entered - unsuccessfully - the 2005 X Factor TV contest but returned triumphantly in 2008, when she was mentored by Cheryl Cole and, after singing a wide range of covers, including Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey and the Jackson 5, she proved a resounding winner with 58% of the public vote. Dubbed the British Beyoncé, her first single - a cover of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah - was 2008's Christmas No 1 in the UK and her debut album Overcome was released in October 2009, with the album's lead single Bad Boys - featuring American rapper Flo Rida - also topping the charts.