Congratulations @Julian_! Extremely well played with ABBA and they/you are a very worthy winner. My ABBA knowledge didn’t stretch too far outside of ABBA Gold, so it was great to be exposed to some of their deeper cuts. Also well done @JosephStyles and @Scene for making it to the final round! You all smashed it!

Maybe it’s a rogue choice, but just like Joseph, Hard Out Here is actually my favourite Lily Allen song (closely followed by The Fear) so that was my top ranked song of the final!

Thank you again to @Calum for an incredibly enjoyable and well-hosted Season 2. Rest now x (and the hype for Season 3 is already high )

Oh and interesting to see how Conan did in the round that brought him back, that was close! Happy that Alley Rose connected so well and had the opportunity alongside @ElectroBoy to showcase more from him. That was also a close run thing in the Semi Final!

Minor note but Sober was a radio single in the USA, however it performed poorly which seemingly led to it not becoming a single internationally or receiving a bigger push in the US (plus no music video). The label really botched that era, particularly in the UK! Despite scoring a Top 10 single in Never Again and even managing a #2 album with My December, the era pretty much ended here after that.

Congrats to all 3 finalists and well done Julian you played it brilliantly!

Well done Scene slightly bitter you got to Kelly before me but karma that you didn’t win 🤣 jokes you did brilliantly and left my all time fave Kelly song till last!

Cant wait for series 3!

6 hours ago, JosephStyles said:

So I've been an enormous Lily fan from the start, her first three albums in particular hugely captured me and defined moments of my life, and West End Girl has placed her firmly back at the top of my affections, cementing itself as one of her best albums. I always loved her bluntness and honesty in her music, whether it was in a more OTT way like Alfie, or something as personal as I Could Say. My aim was to showcase songs from a variety of albums, building momentum as I went, and I think that was largely the case - it's a marathon, not a sprint, and winning individual rounds means nothing as long as you're not eliminated, so I tried as much as possible to use bigger hitters later in the game!

It was really fun not having people know who I was. I kept my identity secret last year too even though we didn't have to, and I deliberately chose an artist that I love very much, but wouldn't immediately be traced back to me. It was helped significantly by many of you picking my favourite artists - I could feasibly have been any of Delta, Atomic Kitten, Kesha, Shawn, Ruel, Troye or Conan (particularly in some cases where I'm arguably the most vocal/known stan of a couple ). I'd actually considered Atomic Kitten but wasn't sure they'd get that far, so I was very much living vicariously through @Lukuzz's excellent choices (truly wouldn't have played that much differently at all!).

Breaking the choices down a little more (it's long I'm sorry x)...

Round 1: The Earth Auditions - URL Badman (9th, 253 points)

This one has always been a favourite of mine, even if it wasn't much of a hit in the end. Sheezus is a divisive album but I was all over it in 2014 and this song remains a highlight. Some of the references are outdated but the point it's making remains very relevant nowadays! Was happy to take a risk in this so early in the competition, I figured it probably wouldn't be last and be eliminated (and turns out I didn't even need to worry about that).

Round 2: The Orbit Auditions - Who'd Have Known (2nd, 254 points)

The problem I found with some of Lily's older music is that I couldn't really gage how popular it was on the site. I think I could've been a little more confident in this down the line maybe as it really seemed to find some fans, and I was thrilled with that! This one was an immediate favourite at the time and again, while it's not one of her biggest hits, it remains a Lily favourite. When I saw her live for the Sheezus Tour, this was the final song of the encore, and it made so much sense despite seeming unusual on paper!

Round 3: Boot Camp: Part One - Everyone's At It (5th, 169 points)

One I may have saved for later had I known about the album track round, but glad this one still made it through as it's the single that got away in my view. I was torn between this and Knock 'Em Out for an older album track choice, I may have gone for the latter if I'd realised just how It's Not Me, It's You-heavy the first half of my choices ended up being! Lily at her best with the social commentary.

Round 4: Boot Camp: Part Two - Tennis (3rd, 238 points)

I could've gone for any West End Girl song here really (Madeline exempt given it was a single and this was the album track round, and I had Pussy Palace saved... more on that later x). Tennis is one of the most popular picks on Spotify which is what swung me to this over Ruminating, which was my second option, though I do personally prefer this one too. Was always going to delve into West End Girl but didn't want to rely toooo heavily on it.

Round 5: Judges' Houses - 22 (3rd, 205 points)

At the time I remember feeling disappointed this was a single instead of Everyone's At It, but it's aged really well for me, particularly given the lyrics are more relevant to me now I'm a lot older than when this came out

Round 6: The Black Hole Battles - f*** You (LOSE)

This one had me SHOCKED I'll be honest!! f*** You is a Lily essential to me, and though it wasn't a single here, it still feels like one of her most well known tracks. Obviously HAIM sent a fan favourite too and it just wasn't a match unfortunately, but I was so confident in this! A humbling moment x

Round 7: The Scoop - The Fear (RETURN)

I had The Fear pencilled in for the second half of the final unsurprisingly, but by this point, I just had to secure re-entry into the competition so there was no doubt in my mind that it had to be used here. A pop classic in my eyes, so witty and well-written, laced with great social commentary, and once again it's aged so well. I remember hearing it for the first time on MySpace so clearly! I was relieved it won Lily re-entry and was ready to delete the Pop forum if it didn't x

Round 8: Live Show One - Madeline (6th, 236 points)

The centrepiece of West End Girl, which is a masterpiece of an album. I really wanted to send this but wasn't sure I'd have enough slots - I'm so glad I did though! The entire album is perhaps greater than the sum of its parts, but this still works fantastically well as its own entity.

Round 9: Live Show Two - Pussy Palace (7th, 236 points)

Y'all really had your pitchforks out for five minutes!!! Pussy Palace was the song I had pencilled in for the ballad round from the second Calum teased such a thing, and it didn't cross my mind that it wasn't really a ballad for a second, so I was a little put out by some of the remarks, especially the suggestion of it being "cheeky" when, in my view, there were a couple of songs that were way less ballad-y than Pussy Palace that didn't get as much attention. It's probably the only part of the competition I didn't really enjoy. Either way, it made it through and I'm glad, because it's a masterpiece of a track - heartbreaking despite (and perhaps because of) the explicit, unwaveringly honest lyrics. Littlest Things would have been the second choice but I wasn't so confident in it, and I wasn't ever planning to use Somewhere Only We Know (too risky for a cover, especially one so associated with winter).

Round 10: Live Show Three - LDN (1st, 293 points)

Back with a bang, and rightfully so! Finally got to one of my Alright, Still choices, and this one has always been a major favourite of mine. Again, I wasn't really sure what Buzzjack thought of this song these days, so seeing it finish first was a real delight, and reinvigorated my hopes for a final placement.

Round 11: Live Show Four - Lost My Mind (4th, 207 points)

No Shame is a very overlooked era in Lily's discography, and it's the album I revisit the least. It's deep and heavy, without the pop sensibility or immediate narrative hook of West End Girl. Nonetheless, it's far from being without merit, and it's only right that it got one moment of its own. It was between Trigger Bang and Lost My Mind for this round (and tbf there wasn't much else as it was the flop round) but I figured a Giggs rap in the first minute wasn't the best hook for a pop contest on here and I think I chose correctly, I love the vibe of Lost My Mind and it's a surefire highlight from the album.

Round 12: The Semi Final - Not Fair (SAFE)

I worried about this one being potentially divisive but I'm glad the love came through for it. I dithered over how early I should play this given I was uncertain but I made the right decision. One of her most fun tracks undoubtedly.

Round 13: The Grand Final: Part One - Smile (SAFE)

Another pop classic and I always had this pencilled in for round 1 of the final. I was really hoping it would make it into the top 3 so I could outdo my placement from last year! Loved this from the moment I heard it, and it kickstarted not just my love of Lily, but opened the door to Kate Nash who followed a year later (and Kate's debut album is my favourite of all time).

Round 14: The Grand Final: Part Two - Hard Out Here

Originally The Fear's moment to shine had things gone a little more smoothly, it was up to Hard Out Here to carry the torch for the final leg. I did have this pencilled in earlier but wasn't sure, so ultimately swapped it for The Fear after I had to use that one sooner. It's actually very fitting though, because this is my personal favourite Lily track, and getting into the final, whilst it guaranteed that I'd outplace last season, it more importantly gave me the chance to send my own favourite Lily song. Though Somewhere Only We Know was her comeback single in 2013, this was the real comeback moment and I'll never forget how immediately it hooked me. Deliberately explicit to make its point, Hard Out Here unfortunately remains very relevant now, and it's all packed into one of Lily's biggest bops. Its placement in the final would never have bothered me and I had no expectations to win by this point, but as far as I'm concerned, I couldn't have gone out on a bigger high.

It's been a real hoot once again, thanks so much to Calum for hosting (your effort has been second-to-none for a second year) and for everyone else making it a really fun journey. I've made some great discoveries and rediscoveries (I totally forgot about Summer Sunshine by The Corrs but what a fantastic track!), and I'm so happy I got to deliver my full vision for Lily!

tl;dr - thank you baby x

Thank you, I tried my best with the kittens!

You did great

Firstly and most importantly a massive thank you to @Calum. Your hard work and dedication to this game has been phenomenal and not only has it been a great deal of fun, it has also been wonderful to see so many people from across Buzzjack to come together to participate in this. You've done an absolutely wonderful job. So thank you for that!

@Julian_, a BIG CONGRATULATIONS on taking the crown for Series 2! You played it brilliantly and did so well. It must've been tough at stages to resist the urge to send the absolute big hitters and vote scorers. I grew up around ABBA's music thanks to my mum, so a lot of the songs you sent were ones I'd already heard. As Good As New however was one that I hadn't heard and I absolutely loved it! So thank you for bringing that one to my attention!

@Scene, well done on the 2nd place finish! Like ABBA Kelly had a rather big back catalogue for you to pick from and you played it incredibly well! I've been a fan of Kelly's since Miss Independent in 2003 and it was lovely seeing so many of her great songs feature here. Gone is an absolute favourite of mine so I was beyond pleased to see that feature in you choices. I was secretly hoping Addicted or Don't Waste Your Time would make an appearance, but to be honest you played it so well. Also I've added My December to my list of albums to revisit. I haven't listened to it since 2007 but hearing Sober again has got me eager to hear the album in full for the first time in almost 20 years.

@JosephStyles, well done on a podium finish and for bring Lily back from elimination to the final 3! Who'd Have Known and 22 are some of my favorite Lily singles and Everyone's At It and Pussy Palace are some of my favourite album tracks from her, so thank you for featuring them.

@Calum, could I make a potential suggestion for the next series please?

If people think it's a good idea it might be worth getting interested participants to submit 3-6 acts they'd like to mentor, at least 1 for each of the 3 categories. Then they can be assigned one of those choices at random. I know people might not get their first choice or preferred option but it'd ensure one category doesn't fill up straight away. It also might benefit the people that don't see the 'sign-up' straight away for whatever reason.

The only downside I could potentially see is people getting their least preferred category choice, but with that you'd surely only enter if you were happy to mentor in any category.

Not sure what others think of that.

Also I don't mean to step on your toes as you do this so brilliantly. 😃

7 hours ago, Paddington James said:

I grew up around ABBA's music thanks to my mum, so a lot of the songs you sent were ones I'd already heard. As Good As New however was one that I hadn't heard and I absolutely loved it! So thank you for bringing that one to my attention!

I recommend the “Voulez-Vous” album. It works well as a unit and all the album tracks are great. “Kisses Of Fire” and “Lovelight” are a couple of other lesser known highlights from it.

6 hours ago, Paddington James said:

@Calum, could I make a potential suggestion for the next series please?

If people think it's a good idea it might be worth getting interested participants to submit 3-6 acts they'd like to mentor, at least 1 for each of the 3 categories. Then they can be assigned one of those choices at random. I know people might not get their first choice or preferred option but it'd ensure one category doesn't fill up straight away. It also might benefit the people that don't see the 'sign-up' straight away for whatever reason.

The only downside I could potentially see is people getting their least preferred category choice, but with that you'd surely only enter if you were happy to mentor in any category.

Not sure what others think of that.

Also I don't mean to step on your toes as you do this so brilliantly. 😃

Good idea in theory but that sounds like a long task to orchestrate with the randomiser element. I like the idea about us submitting a short list each and then if our first choice is taken we get our 2nd choice etc.

One thing I’d suggest tweaking is the luck component of the battles. If a BJ-friendly act is submitted and one of their songs is an undeniable hit on this forum (Since U Been Gone for e.g.), it’s basically spelling the end of the road for its component before the battle has begun. Maybe one way to tackle this is every mentor is forced to send a deep cut during the battles lmao. 🤷 (feel free to rip my ideas to shreds ppl if they’re shit )

That's not a bad shout re the battles... I'd also maybe suggest cutting the battles (slightly) so the finals aren't as uneven.

You could use the round before the battles (Judges Houses) to have the top 3 (or 4) from each category make the lives. Then the remainder have to face the battles - almost like picking wildcards?

I know a big cut has to be made at some point, but the battles felt extremely brutal🤣

Edited Friday at 09:584 days by ElectroBoy

Wow what a fun contest !!

Calum you have done an amazing job , thank you for your time and effort.

I already am looking forward to season 3 !!!!

Well done to Julian and ABBA

Now how about Pop Factor Lottery?!!

And we all become twink managers!!!

Edited Friday at 11:394 days by Addy!

The twink category is the last remaining yet to win!

2 minutes ago, Scene said:

The twink category is the last remaining yet to win!

The groups didn't win until Series 8 in X Factor... so we could be in for a long ride if things are replicated here. Should get a Twink win in 2032

Just back from a weekend away so only catching up properly with this now. @Calum my only minor suggestion is that I'd have liked to have a list of which members were left in after each round as I enjoy guessing who was behind each act. But other than that the contest was executed to perfection (well apart from me going out in the Battles round because I came up against Abba but that's Lady Luck's fault rather than Lady Buzzjack's so I hope she's doing well after being rescued!)

Not having a participant list made the guessing even more interesting I think. But it was generally fairly clear that almost everyone voting regularly was either a participant or became a judge in the live shows.

Actually if the voting was made private all the way through you could then get a shock reveal after the final which would be fun!

I would miss the public voting rounds if they went completely tbh.

Was gonna post this earlier, but just for completeness

I can’t explain it but the big tower of capital letters “LOST” feels like an attack x

17 minutes ago, RobBot said:

I can’t explain it but the big tower of capital letters “LOST” feels like an attack x

If only your act was more popular