British singer Rebecca Ferguson first found fame on The X Factor but has since become an activist in the music industry. The Liverpool-born performer, who was a runner-up on the ITV series in 2010, is made a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the King’s Birthday Honours for her services to the music industry. The 37-year-old originally studied to become a legal secretary before making her name on the singing competition, beating One Direction to second place while Matt Cardle was named champion.
Rebecca Ferguson during the audition stage of ITV’s The X Factor (Ken McKay/Talkback Thames/PA) Her debut album Heaven, released in 2011, peaked at number three on the UK albums chart. Ferguson also featured on the Justice Collective’s star-studded remake of He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother, which triumphed as the UK’s Christmas number one track in 2012. The singer later turned her hand to activism within the industry.
In 2021, Ferguson met former culture secretary Oliver Dowden to discuss discrimination in the music industry, a meeting which she described at the time as “very productive”. Former culture secretary Oliver Dowden (Yui Mok/PA) In September last year, Ferguson gave evidence to MPs on the Women And Equalities Committee as part of a 2023-2024 report into misogyny and discrimination in the UK music industry. Ferguson criticised music managers and agents, whom she claimed manipulate artists, during the inquiry which examined misogynistic attitud.