X Rated

It occurs to me that if music is going to be at all competitive, then the playing field ought to be level, at very least. Call me an old radical, but I'm suggesting that there should be an entirely separate chart for singles released by X Factor winners. 

Let's face it, if you promote anything on TV for around 16 weeks, it's going to capture the public's attention and, as such, nothing else can compete. That type of promotion would cost six figures - way out of reach for most artists - and so judging an X Factor single alongside something with a 'normal' amount of PR behind it isn't at all fair.

In fact, I'm surprised that the fair trading people haven't caught onto the scam - but there again, it's only music, isn't it? (And yes, I think Jeff Buckley's version of 'Hallelujah' is much better than... oooh, wass'ername's!)