X factor's aiden grimshaw unrecognisable 15 years since appearing on show

AIDEN GRIMSHAW, WHO APPEARED ON THE X FACTOR BACK IN 2010, LOOKS COMPLETELY UNRECOGNISABLE NOW, 15 YEARS SINCE HE WOWED THE JUDGES ON THE POPULAR ITV TALENT SHOW PETER HART Weekend Editor –

OK! and TIFFANY WALLIS Freelance Reporter 07:30, 01 Jun 2025 Aiden Grimshaw is barely recognisable 15 years since appearing on The X Factor alongside One Direction. The fresh-faced hopeful

captivated the celebrity judges on Simon Cowell's TV talent show back in 2010, when he boldly covered Kanye West's smash hit Gold Digger in his audition, without a backing track.

Louis Walsh branded the then-18 year old "absolutely brilliant", Nicole Scherzinger said "I love your voice" and Simon Cowell added, "You're one of the best

we've found, certainly in Manchester and possibly – in your category – throughout the competition." Progressing week by week not only with 1D but also Rebecca Ferguson, Katie

Waissel, Cher Lloyd, and eventual victor Matt Cardle, gap-year student Aiden secured a respectable ninth position. READ MORE: X Factor band formed by Simon Cowell 'to reunite but

without one member' Following his X Factor stint, Aiden signed a deal with record label RCA, releasing his debut single Is This Love, which peaked at number 35 on the UK Singles Chart.

He then dropped his album Misty Eye, hitting number 19. In 2018, Aiden revealed he'd been using the alias Butterjack to release music, only to then steer back to his original name. In

2023 it was announced that he'd signed a new deal with a Dutch record label. Article continues below Aiden now looks so different from his clean-shaven, quiff-haired X Factor days,

often sporting a beard on his Instagram page and most recently appearing with a moustache and tousled hair. A week ago, he talked about writing more songs, alongside a picture of himself

playing a guitar. The singer told his 19k followers: "Back to it, 20 consecutive days of sun. 13 days of coughs. 6 songs written - Nearly 2 bank holidays. 1 europa final loss. A fresh

bill of health a new month - new music exciting new things. Mays been a ride." Aiden has also opened up about his regrets of not fully capitalising on the opportunity The X Factor

presented him with back in the day. Speaking to the Metro, he shared his reflections, saying: "My only regrets about the show are that maybe didn't shoot as hard as I could have in

some of the aspects afterwards because of trying to be cool. Now, I would just go for everything because why would you not do that? That's so stupid. But I enjoyed it." He also

talked about the pressure of the show, continuing: "‘There was a lot of pressure to find what to do and my not wanting to be uncool stopped me from exploring all paths and being out

there." Article continues below Aiden was romantically linked to Cher Lloyd during his time on The X Factor, and talked about his bromance with Matt Cardle. The pair were said to spend

all their time in the house chatting and making each other cups of tea. Aiden said: "Matt and me are really good mates, he's a great bloke. We've got a really great bromance

going on." READ MORE: 'I made one change to my meals and lost weight, felt fuller and cut down my caffeine'