JAMES GRAHAM has promised there are "bright things" in store for him after his band Stereo Kicks was booted off the X Factor last weekend.
The Bicknacre lad's band ended up in the bottom two for what would be their third and final time, losing the sing-off to Billericay's Lauren Platt after their rendition of I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz left the judges undecided, and the vote went to deadlock.
But despite the disappointment at having the fewest public votes, which left several band members weeping on stage, James has his sights set on getting a record deal – and has insisted this won't be the last we hear of Stereo Kicks.
"As much as the boys were sad to leave, as they had started to believe they could go all the way, I know the boys are very happy to have got to the quarter finals in such an amazing competition," said James' mum Paula Graham.
"James wants to thank everybody who has voted for him and Stereo Kicks through X Factor and really appreciates all the support they have been given, especially from Essex.
"The boys now have a gruelling schedule of gigs all around the UK, starting this week, and they're all really looking forward to it. They also have a new top management company James Grant Group looking after them, which already manages acts like The Script.
"After Christmas they will be joining the other top seven acts for the X Factor 2015 Tour which is fantastic. James is really looking forward to travelling around the UK and Ireland and getting to perform and hopefully meet the amazing fans that they now have.
"Ultimately, once X Factor is over they are hoping to get a record deal so they can begin recording their own music which is really exciting."
James seemed chipper the day after the band's defeat, tweeting: "Been a weird day! Can't believe XF is over for us! But we had an amazing time and met some amazing people! Love everyone at @TheXFactor". However, Paula says the boys do feel they were at a disadvantage during Saturday's performance.
"It was sad and disappointing to see the boys go on Sunday. As usual, Stereo Kicks had a difficult time on the Saturday with their choreography being cut literally minutes before they went on stage, which made their first performance very difficult as they literally had an empty stage and had no choice but to stand in a line and just sing," she explained.
"They felt they were so disadvantaged on Saturday as the other four acts had amazing staging, dancers, props, lighting and so on and Stereo Kicks literally had a bare stage for both songs. There was no way they could compete really with the other contestants' amazing productions in what was such a crucial week."
The boys' dramatic evening didn't end with their X Factor defeat though, as they then got embroiled in a Twitter war of words with Katie Hopkins, a former contestant on The Apprentice.
Following the band's exit, the notoriously-opinionated Hopkins tweeted: "Stereos***s wishing they had spent a bit of time at school instead of practising with a hairbrush in the mirror. Burger King kick. NEET kick".
But the columnist didn't have the last word, as Stereo Kicks' Tom angrily responded: "@KTHopkins I got 3 A*s and a B at A Level. You n*b. – Tom".
But the Twitter fight doesn't seem to have quelled the boys' optimism, with James tweeting to fans on Monday: "Literally just woke up!! What a lay in! bright things ahead for me and the lads! The hard work starts now!!!"
