Kristine Allen catches up with Janet Grogan who wowed The X Factor judges with her rendition of Bonnie Raitt’s ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’ at the Edinburgh auditions on Sunday.

The X Factor 2014 auditions are well underway, with both Simon and Cheryl back on the judging panel, and already there have been plenty of stand-out performances. Among these is Dublin woman, Janet Grogan from Tallaght, who sang her version of Bonnie Raitt’s ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’ while looking into Simon’s eyes. The flirtation paid off, and Simon gave her a fourth ‘yes’, catapulting her to the next stage of the auditions. It’s been a big stamp of approval for the 26 year-old singer, as she told me when we met up.

First things first, Janet, congrats on behalf of The OutMost team on your stunning performance!

Thank-you so much!

It’s only been a couple of days since your audition aired. How has your life been since?

It’s been so crazy! My Twitter followers shot up as did my Facebook likes, and I don’t think my phone has stopped vibrating since! Mostly well wishes and compliments, so it’s really great. I’m very overwhelmed by the positive response!

Your eyes never left a certain judge throughout your performance, would Simon be your usual type?

Ha ha! I thnk editing made that look a little more intense than it actually was! But he wouldn’t be far off. I’m very attracted to confidence.

In the past, The X Factor has been criticised by musicians for its ‘shortcut’ into the music industry. You’ve been working on your career for a number of years though, haven’t you?

I can understand why people think like that because they only see what has been edited together for the TV show. The reality though is that there are really long, stressful and hard working days involved, so there isn’t anything short about The X Factor.

But yes, I’ve been in this industry a long time, so I’m familiar with the highs and lows that come with it. I think that’s one of the reasons I didn’t try out for it before now. I didn’t want to go into something without having done a sort of apprenticeship. I’ve been gigging and songwriting since I was 15 and I’ve had a small bit of success as a writer in Germany, but now it’s time for me to be the performer.

How would you describe the style of music that you write?

I like to make pop music with a hip-hop, soul and R’n’B element to it. But I’m genuinely influenced by too many genres to list.

Who is currently on your iPod playlist?

Always Beyoncé! A lot of chart stuff, Motown classics, old school R’n’B, and there’s even some heavy metal on there. I’m really eclectic and it depends on my mood.

There have been a number of powerful female vocalists to date on The X Factor. Who has been your favourite so far and why?

My all time favourite has to be Ella Henderson, especially when she sang ‘Believe’ by Cher and ‘Lovin’ You’ by Minnie Riperton! She’s an outstanding vocalist. I also really love her song ‘Ghost’ so much that I covered it on my YouTube.

If you continue to progress in the competition, what song would you like most to perform on the live shows?

Well, I’ve already sang my favourite song with ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me’, so I’d to go with something like ‘Heard it Through The Grapevine‘.  I love me some Marvin Gaye!

Janet’s second X Factor arena audition at Wembley will be aired in the coming weeks on TV3. You can follow Janet on Twitter Janet Grogan @JanetGrogan