| Rachel Potter | |
| |
| Information | |
|---|---|
| Names | Rachel Lindsey Potter |
| Age(s) | 30 |
| Hometown | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Category | Over 25s |
| Mentor | Kelly Rowland |
| Elimination Information | |
| Place | 11th Place |
Rachel Lindsey Potter (born August 21, 1984) is an American country singer from Seminole, Florida who finished in 11th place on season 3 of the X Factor USA. She was a part of the Over 25s catagory, mentored by Kelly Rowland.
Background
Born in New Orleans, Louisiana and raised in Seminole, Florida, Rachel began singing at church when she was a child. She also started writing her own songs when she was young as a way to cope with her mother being diagnosed with juvenile diabetes.
After working at Disney World and graduating college, Rachel moved to New York and began working on Broadway, appearing in such shows as Evita and The Addams Family. Though happy doing Broadway, Rachel decided to take her career in another direction and pursue a career in country music. She moved to Nashville, released an EP called Live the Dream, and got a job as a bartender at a bar called McFaddens, which is what she was doing when she decided to try out for the X Factor.
The X Factor
Rachel auditioned for the show singing a country version of the Queen classic "Somebody to Love". She got rave reviews from the judges. She made it to the top 40 where she got Kelly Rowland as her mentor.
Four Chair Challenge
Despite being sick during this part of the competition, Rachel gave it her all on the Beyonce song "Irreplaceable". However, she got booed by a very unhappy crowd and got a mixed reaction from the judges. Though she admitted to the performance not being her best, Rachel pleaded her case and made it to the live shows.
Live shows
For this part of the competition, Rachel took on the Lee Ann Womack hit "I Hope You Dance", which earned her praise. Simon Cowell called her song choice "perfect". He also stated that he felt that she had outsung Lillie McCloud. Paulina Rubio admitted to loving the tone of her voice. Rachel's performance earned her a spot in the top 12.
For Motown NIght, Rachel took on the Isley Brothers classic "This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak For You)". However, her performance of it got her mixed reviews. However, due to a graphics error that nullified the votes, Rachel had to sing another song for the re-vote show. That song was the Martina McBride hit "Anyway", which earned her praise.
For '80s Night, Rachel sang "Alone" by Heart. Her performance of the song, famously covered by Carrie Underwood during season 4 of American Idol, earned her good reviews from the judges, but it wasn't enough as Rachel ended up in the bottom 2 with Khaya Cohen and was eliminated on November 14, 2013, finishing in 11th place.
Post X Factor
Rachel collabrated with Khaya Cohen on a video of the two singing the Christmas classic "Silent Night". The
Rachel & Restless Road
video is posted on Rachel's YouTube channel. She also collabrated with Restless Road on a cover of the Keith Urban/Miranda Lambert hit "We Were Us". The video debuted on her YouTube channel on January 22, 2014. She's also been busy writing and recording new music. She recently released her first post-X Factor single called "The Verdict" for free via her official website. She even returned to New York to perform at the Live @ 54 show on February 24, 2014. The show also featured Khaya Cohen.
Rachel Potter has an episode dedicated to her and a discussion about her where she joins the hosts of the podcast Broadwaysted. The link can be found here.
Restless Road rumors
When Restless Road's Zack Beeken and Andrew Scholz announced that member Colton Pack had left the group, rumors circulated on Twitter about Rachel possibly replacing him due to the popularity of their "We Were Us" cover and how well she seemed to fit in with the guys in the group. Rachel, however, denied those rumors, and singer Jared Keim replaced Colton in Restless Road.
Not So Black and White (2015-present)
In April 2014, Rachel launched a fundraising campaign via pledgemusic.com to help raise money so that she could make an album called Not So Black and White. 10% of the money raised towards the making of the album will also be donated to Thistle Farms, a charity that helps take women off the streets and teaches them the skills they need so that they can succeed in the world. Rachel successfully reached her fundraising goal. The album was released on March 3, 2015.
Links
Discography
Albums:
- Not So Black and White (2015)
Singles:
- "The Verdict" (2014)
EPs:
- Live the Dream (2012)
Trivia
- Rachel's celebrity crush is Justin Timberlake.
- The super power she would want is the ability to fly.
- At age 29, Rachel was the youngest contestant in her catagory.
- In Week 3, Potter received more votes than Cohen which meant that if the result went to deadlock, Potter would have been saved.
