From his first performance on the show, Simon Cowell was a vocal supporter, expressing surprise that he didn't already have a record deal. With his boyish good looks, down-to-earth personality, and powerful, versatile voice, Haenow was an early favorite to win, and eventually triumphed with 57% of the public vote. In traditional X Factor fashion, his debut single, a cover of OneRepublic's "Something I Need," was released in late December and became the U.K.'s Christmas number one, beating Mark Ronson's hotly anticipated comeback single "Uptown Funk" to the top spot. Shortly thereafter, on his 30th birthday, Haenow unsurprisingly signed to Cowell's Syco label and began work on his debut self-titled album, which was released in November 2015. ~ John D. Buchanan, Rovi