In 2016, Matt Terry was crowned the winner of that year’s X Factor competition. The televised talent show seeks to find the UK’s biggest stars and have them compete against each other for the glory of being #1, as well as assistance in achieving their dreams as a music star. However, Matt Terry was about to get a little bit more than that, when he was allowed to perform Prince’s iconic “Purple Rain” with none other than Nicole Scherzinger for his final performance.
Matt Terry’s smooth, powerful voice was just the right choice to cover a song as delicate yet punchy as “Purple Rain”. While Prince was a unique being who is incredibly hard to replicate, Terry did a great job covering this unmistakable and classic ballad. The song was transformed entirely, however, when Nicole Scherzinger entered the stage in a stunning dress and lent her beautiful voice to create a choreographed and powerful duet. Watch the performance in the video below:
While Matt Terry can certainly hold a crowd on his own, as his initial performance shows, it’s when Scherzinger enters that the song reaches a new level. On top of that, the stage and screen lights become more dramatic, a heavy purple glow can be seen throughout the Wembley Arena, and confetti fires as this new music star is officially born through The X Factor. The public, nor Terry himself, however, knew at that point that he would be crowned the winner of the show that year.
Outside of her time assisting in judging on The X Factor, Nicole Scherzinger has established herself as an incredibly successful singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress. She is perhaps best known for her time in the pop/dance group The Pussycat Dolls, who are one of the best-selling female music groups of all time. After the group’s disbanding in 2010 (and later in 2021 after reuniting in 2019), Nicole Scherzinger has released several studio albums which have overall been well received by the public.
After Matt Terry and Nicole Scherzinger’s performance, host Dermot O’Leary approached the duo and asked Terry how he was feeling. “That was just incredible, to sing with Nicole Scherzinger… at Wembley”; he was taken aback by both the reception and the incredible opportunity that he had been given. While thanking the crowd for bringing him to this opportunity, he could be heard holding back the tears during what we can only imagine as being the best day of Terry’s young life.
“Purple Rain” is one of the most recognizable songs by the late great American singer-songwriter and record producer, Prince. Among those roles, he also delved into dancing and acting and was considered to be one of the greatest musicians of his generation. If his music wasn’t striking enough, Prince also adopted a flamboyant and androgynous persona, which brought him a lot of attention throughout his career. Paired with his incredible music, he was a complete package of entertainment who was also massively influential.