A viral TikTok claims to expose what happened behind-the-scenes during a woman's 'huge temper tantrum' on 'The X Factor'

• In 2012, singer Zoe Alexander went viral after her disastrous audition on ITV's "The X Factor."
• In 2020, she tried to set the record straight and said she was manipulated by the show's staff.
• Her explanation was picked up by a TikTok user and went viral with over 25 million views.
• People are saying her story shows the perils of appearing on reality TV.

In 2012, Zoe Alexander's appearance on "The X Factor" went viral for all the wrong reasons. Now, a TikTok video is explaining Alexander's side of the story.

Eight years ago, Alexander was working as a Pink tribute act when she decided she wanted to try out for the British talent show. However, she never got the opportunity to go further than the first audition in front of judges Gary Barlow, Tulisa Contostavlos, Nicole Scherzinger, and Louis Walsh. After singing a Pink song, the judges told Alexander she needed to find herself as an artist.

Alexander did not take the feedback well. The 7-minute clip of Alexander's audition was originally posted on The X Factor's YouTube page with the title "P!nk Impersonator has HUGE TEMPER TANTRUM!"

But now, Alexander's version of what really happened behind-the-scenes is making people see her audition in a new light.

Zoe Alexander said she was originally manipulated by 'The X Factor' production staff into singing a Pink song

Alexander decided it was time to share her side of the story in a YouTube video posted in July - eight years after her audition was broadcast.

"It took me many years to come to terms with their dishonest portrayal of me and their intentionally induced public perception," she told Insider.

Alexander said the problems started when she was emailing "The X Factor" team about her upcoming audition. She said they rejected her first two lists of five songs and encouraged her to perform a Pink song. Despite saying she wanted to get away from her day job and form her own identity as an artist, she said she was essentially told she would not get an audition otherwise. So, she showed up at the studio armed with the backing track for Pink's "So What" and hoped for the best.

However, the judges immediately appeared disappointed in her apparent song choice and told her to sing something else. Alexander sang Emeli Sandé's "Next To Me" instead, but the judges said that she needed to go and "find herself as an artist" and she didn't get through to the next round.

Alexander is visibly upset on hearing this news and pleads "You told me to sing a Pink song," which the judges deny. According to Alexander, she said this to the production staff, but that is not apparent in the broadcast footage.

Alexander told Insider that she was also told to arrive at the studio at 6 a.m., only to find nobody there, and then stayed in the waiting room for hours. She said she believes the way she was treated was an effort to make her feel "as uncomfortable, uneasy, and scared as possible."

Looking back, Alexander said the show's staff had "bad intentions from the start."

Previously, a UK broadcasting regulator investigated the claims and concluded Alexander 'was not unfairly portrayed in the programme'

A representative for "The X Factor" did not comment on Alexander's allegations but pointed Insider towards a 2013 investigation by Ofcom, the UK's broadcasting regulator, that concluded Alexander "was not unfairly portrayed in the programme" since she was "given an opportunity to perform a second song."

It also states Alexander should have known what to expect in terms of negative comments from judges and having her reaction filmed since the show was in its ninth series. According to the report, untransmitted footage showed Alexander did act as the episode depicted - swearing and throwing a microphone, for example.

However, the report also cites several "conflicts of evidence," such as the situation where Alexander repeatedly said she did not want to sing a Pink song, but was encouraged to.

While the report states it saw raw footage, it does not specify when it was filmed or in what order, or whether certain clips were filmed after Alexander had left the building.

"Ofcom considers that the question of which material to include in a programme is an editorial matter for the programme makers and the broadcaster to make, provided that the editing does not result in unfair treatment," it states.

Ofcom states it is not its role to adjudicate on these conflicts but "to determine whether there was any unfairness to the complainant in the programme as broadcast." And in this case, it determined in 2013, Alexander's audition was not edited unfairly.

A 19-year-old TikTok user shared Alexander's side of the story and it quickly went viral

Alexander's experience has now gone viral again after a 19-year-old TikTok user called Devon Rae told her story of being "the most manipulated contestant in 'X Factor' history." Since November 21, her TikTok has received 3.5 million likes, and Alexander's duet with the original has been viewed over 25 million times.

She told Insider she shared the story because over-the-top auditions were a staple of her childhood. "Everyone my age spent hours in elementary, middle, and high school watching crazy 'American Idol' and 'X-Factor' contestants," she said, adding that "everyone remembers the 'crazy Pink girl.'"

Rae said the guilt and years-later realization that everything may not be as it seems on TV is probably what made her TikTok go viral.

"To discover that an iconic moment from our childhoods was a complete lie and that we all fell right into their trap, sparks a very strong reaction from people," she said. "I think it also made a light bulb go off in people's heads of just how manipulative 'reality' shows are."

Since Rae posted her video, Alexander has also received over 664,000 followers on her own TikTok and 67,000 YouTube subscribers. Comments underneath the TikTok and Alexander's video are full of support with others sharing their own experiences of appearing on shows such as "The X Factor."

The X Factor UK YouTube channel has also changed the title of the video to "Zoe Alexander's audition - Pink's So What - The X Factor UK 2012," and turned off comments.

An "X Factor" representative told Insider when asked about the title change: "Like any media organisation we regularly update digital content to reflect the evolving digital landscape."

Rae said she feels glad that so much good was able to come out of her TikTok because Alexander has "gotten the platform and love she deserves."

Zoe Alexander is now committed to spreading awareness of what can happen behind-the-scenes of reality TV shows

Alexander said she would not recommend anyone audition for talent shows such as "The X Factor" unless "there are serious investigations of the treatment of human beings."

"I think that people on reality TV are not always seen as real people and I think my revealing the truth is going some way to change that culture," she said. "It is psychologically damaging for the people involved, and that goes further than just 'The X Factor.' Reality TV as a whole needs to be investigated."

She says she is still singing and is also currently studying for a degree in criminal psychology.

"Things have changed so much," she said. "Going forward I am going to continue making music, and I hope to help other people who have been damaged by the exploitation of reality TV."

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