James Andrew Michael (born September 26, 1967) is an American record producer, songwriter, engineer, mixer, vocalist and musician. He is currently the lead singer of the rock band Sixx:A.M.
Michael's actual given name was James Michel, but he changed the spelling of his surname to Michael so people would not mispronounce it. He took piano lessons while growing up and sang in Holland High School's show choir, Vocal Dimensions. As a teen, he played in different local rock bands including The Way We Dress and Night Shift. In the late 1980s, he moved to Los Angeles where he slept on a friend's couch the first year and lived on a diet of junk food and beer.
James Michael has worked as a record producer, songwriter and/or engineer/mixer with many recording artists including Kelly Clarkson, Alanis Morissette, Meat Loaf, Mötley Crüe, HammerFall, Scorpions, Hilary Duff, The Rasmus, Papa Roach, Trapt, American Bang, Saliva, The Exies, Deana Carter, Sammy Hagar, Lillix, Sarah Kelly, Taylor Momsen, Halestorm, Jack's Mannequin, Brides of Destruction, Shahnaz and Marion Raven.
The eighth UK series of The X Factor was broadcast on ITV from 20 August 2011, with the live shows starting on 8 October 2011. Girl group Little Mix were the winners, and the runner-up was Marcus Collins. After The X Factor, several of the contestants went onto release singles, including Little Mix, Collins, Amelia Lily, Misha B, Frankie Cocozza, The Risk and 2 Shoes. On 25 July 2013, three contestants from series 8 - Little Mix, Amelia Lily and Misha B - were included in the (three-minute 41-second) X Factor Ultimate Mash-Up, a video trailer for series 10, a selection of 13 tracks and artists chosen to represent a decade of 'The X Factor' artists impact on the UK national chart.
The "Boys" category was mentored by Gary Barlow. Contestants in this category are males aged 16 to 24. The eight candidates were Frankie Cocozza, Marcus Collins, Craig Colton, Joe Cox, Luke Lucas, James Michael, Max Vickers and John Wilding. Barlow chose:
It should be easier, I should be good at this by now,
After all this time, I should really have it down,
But I don't want you back, even though that's how it sounds,
But I can't lie, I miss having you around.
If I really love you then I gotta learn to let go,
Memories won't lead me to heaven though,
I'm doing everything I gotta do to get through,
But it's a b*tch making love without you.
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
I can run but I can't escape you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
Wish I could learn to hate you.
It's like a hurricane, came and tore my world apart,
And in the aftermath, I'm finding pieces of my heart,
If I was mad at you, I would already have moved on,
But in reality you were good to me but you left where you belong.
If I really love you then I gotta learn to let go,
Memories won't lead me to heaven though,
I'm doing everything I gotta do to get through,
But it's a b*tch making love without you.
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
I can run but I can't escape you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
Wish I could learn to hate you.
I must admit I, I've done some stupid things,
I can't forgive myself for anything,
I wish I could rise above, I wish I didn't care,
I wish I didn't care.
'Cos it was more than just our first time,
I can't believe you broke it off before we even tried,
Now I can't breath in, I can't feel the feeling,
I'm not blaming you I know you had your reasons,
But f*ck all those people that say I wasn't right for you,
And lied to you and said I did things that I didn't do,
Well I swear to God I would have died for you,
I would have died for you, I would have died for you.
If I really love you then I gotta learn to let go,
Memories won't lead me to heaven though,
I'm doing everything I gotta do to get through,
But it's a b*tch making love without you.
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
I can run but I can't escape you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
Wish I could learn to hate you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
Wish I could learn to hate you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh,
Wish I could learn to hate you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh, I can't escape you,
Woah-o-o, woah-oh, I can't escape you,
Wish I could learn to hate you