By Christine Sexton christine.sexton@nqe.com AN X-FACTOR contestant is hoping it will be fifth time lucky for his bid for stardom.

Soul singer Jayson Newland got through a Southend audition and has revealed he will be appearing on the show when it is aired next month.

The 25-year-old call centre worker at Lloyds in Southchurch Road, which is due for closure, is pinning his hopes on success before his job goes later this year.

He said: “Sharon Osbourne is back this year and she is stirring everything up and changing things. They want us to get our communities to support us so I am hoping people will get behind me.

“I sing my own songs and some by other singers. My idols are Elvis, Luther Van Dross and all the old blues artists. I like jazz as well.

“This is the fifth time I have entered so it shows hard work pays off. I’ve been watching the show for a long time. This year is the tenth anniversary so I thought I just had to have another go.” J

ayson impressed the judges with his performance of Whitney Houston’s I Have Nothing. He studied hairdressing at the Central Academy of Hairdressing in Southend, also works freelance, hairstyling for music videos and photo shoots.

Jayson, of Boscombe Road, Southend helps look after his disabled mum. He said: “I live with my mum and help look after. She has spondilitis in her back. Some days she is fine and can walk a bit but others she can hardly move.”

Sharon Osbourne will be joining Take That star Gary Barlow, US pop star Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh in the search for the nation’s next big singing sensation.

The X Factor is expected to start in the next month although no firm date has yet been released.