Danny Dearden appeared on X Factor in 2014
15:42, 15 Apr 2025Updated 15:48, 15 Apr 2025
Danny Dearden appeared on X Factor in 2014(Image: PA)
A tribute has been issued after a contestant who competed on X Factor died aged 34. Danny Dearden appeared on the ITV show in 2014 and reached the judge’s house.
He was mentored by Spice Girls star Mel B and narrowly missed out on a place on the live shows. However, he went on to forge a successful career as a singer after the show.
He signed a deal with Sentric Music in 2021 collaborated with Michael Calfan on the song, Could Be With You, which has had nearly 14 million Spotify Streams. The song was also played on ITV show Love Island.
According to our sister site, Mirror Online, his manager has today announced the sad news he has died. Denise Beighton said: “Heartbroken to wake up to the news that you’re gone.
“I have no words right now, rest easy beautiful boy.” On the X Factor, Danny was in the same category as Jake Quickenden, Andrea Faustini, Jack Walton, Jordan Morris, and Paul Akister.
He travelled to Mel B’s Judge’s House in Mexico and performed a rendition of Kelly Clarkson’s Beautiful Disaster for the Spice Girl and former bandmate, Emma Bunton. However, he was pipped at the post by fellow contestants Andrea, Jack and Paul.
In 2018, Danny spoke about the experience of working with Michael Calfan. He: “It was amazing working with him.
“At the time of the first session, when we wrote “It’s Wrong”, I hadn’t had a lot of experience in a studio of that scale, so it was quite nerve-racking, but everyone made me feel at ease.
“He is one of the most down to earth people I’ve ever met, although it can be difficult at times because he has the strongest French accent I’ve ever heard, that mixed with my Northern/Lancashire/Manc accent we had to repeat ourselves a few times.”
Talking about how successful that song became, he added: “Yeah, it’s mental that amount of streams, we are nearly at three-quarters of a million and we haven’t even started the promotion we have planned yet.
“Seeing people like Martin Garrix and Martin Solveig add it to their personal playlist is crazy.”
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