Fox’s live singing counterpart to The Voice has been struggling for ratings against the powerhouse for the past few seasons. The main draw to the X Factor has been and continues to be one Simon Cowell. This season is no different. Judges include Simon, Kelly Rowland (love!), Demi Lovato and Paulina Rubio. Right now we’re in the midst of auditions but some early favorites have emerged. Josh Levi, a 14-year-old high school student started out strong with an interesting rendition Selena Gomez’s ‘Come and Get It’. He’s actually pretty good and has a bit of style to him. Let’s hope his attitude doesn’t get in the way of his talent. Another interesting performance was of “Valarie” (which for the record Simon has stated he hates as a song choice) by AKNU, a brother trio whose mission it is to give classic music a new twist. A tall order to be sure. Simon’s favorites tend to go pretty far in the competition (he’s not a mega-mogul for nothing) and he declared Brandie Love, a 21-year-old country singer, one of his favorites. Keep your eyes on Love. Lastly, Jeff Gutt, last year’s single dad who almost made it to the live rounds, is back again for another try. Have to give him props for not giving up. Format changes are coming up later in the season, which could bode ill for some of the aforementioned favorites. Tune in to Fox (various nights, Tuesday, Wednesday and one Thursday) to see more auditions and eventually live performances. Will your favorites make it through? Check local listings for times.