Who is Rebecca Ferguson? Former X-Factor contestant hints at Liam Payne's death being linked to exploitation of young stars
After the untimely death of One Direction star Liam Payne, The X Factor contestant Rebecca Ferguson was one of many artists who paid their tributes. Through the tribute, Rebecca also called out the alleged exploitation of young stars in the entertainment industry.
Rebecca Ferguson took to X (formerly Twitter) on October 17. In the tweet, she wrote:
"It’s always a hotel room! We both met at Euston station and shared the taxi together to X factor, young, innocent and unaffected by fame. I can’t help but think of that boy who was hopeful and looking forward to his bright future ahead."
Highlighting the alleged toxicity in the music industry, Ferguson wrote:
"I’ve spoken for years about the exploitation and profiteering of young stars and the effects – many of us are still living with the aftermath and the PTSD."
Rebecca even explained that they were devastated by the news of Liam's death. She concluded by expressing condolences to the grieving family.
For the unversed, born in Liverpool in July 1986, Rebecca Ferguson became a runner-up on The X Factor in 2010. She was a part of the Girls category that was mentored by Cheryl Cole. She participated in the contest the same year as One Direction, who finished in third place. After the show, Ferguson was signed to Syco Music and soon launched her debut album, Heaven.
Over the period of a few years from 2011 to 2016, she released four studio albums, all of which were hits and even made it to the UK Top 10. In 2023, Rebecca played a significant role in the government's Misogyny in Music report. This year in June, she was awarded an MBE.
Rebecca Ferguson had been a well-known activist in the music industry. In 2021, she met the UK culture secretary at the time, Oliver Dowden, to talk about the massive discrimination still prevalent in the music industry. Last year, she submitted a 2023-24 evidence report to the MPs on the Women And Equalities Committee, highlighting misogyny in the UK music industry.
Rebecca Ferguson had previously spoken about the issues that she noticed to be existing in the music industry
According to NME reports, Ferguson's statement post Liam Payne's demise, was not the first time that she highlighted the ongoing issues in the music sector in the UK. As mentioned before, she had spoken about several of them and even submitted reports to the concerned authorities.
In 2021, she urged for parliamentary action after alleging "bullying" in the industry, meeting with important officials like Oliver Dowden. A letter on the singer's behalf was then released, which read:
"The music industry is currently very much front of mind with the Commons Select Committee as the economics of music streaming is in the process of an investigation."
Shortly after that, she launched a petition to collect signatures from the public in order to support musicians. She has repeatedly called out the ways through which the UK music industry was being operated.
Amid the recent incident surrounding Liam Payne, The X Factor stars like Katie Waissel and Rebecca Ferguson have begun pointing out the alleged exploitation in the industry.
