Tom Bleasby: “This isn’t the end, it’s just a new beginning"

Following the news that Tom Bleasby has withdrawn from The X Factor, the star has revealed he never felt "vocally ready" to progress further in the competition.

During our exclusive chat with Tom, the 19-year old also praises mentor Nick Grimshaw, as well as confessing who he's now backing for X Factor glory.

Check out our full interview below...

Tom – we’re sorry to hear about your departure from the The X Factor, it must have been a difficult decision to make?

It was a tough decision; I think I really discovered it at the 6 Chair Challenge. I just don’t know if I felt vocally ready to take on the competition and the pressure. I’m quite a relatively new singer, back in March, I was singing in my bedroom, so I’ve never took to live performing very well. I’m still discovering myself and in the competition, there are some amazing singers and I feel like I need more time to get better myself, as I don’t feel like I’m strong enough.

Moving forward, without being 100% would have been selfish on my part because I would have stopped someone else who was at 100% vocally from going further in the competition. Hopefully given time, I could get there with more time to grow artistically and vocally.

What was it like having Nick Grimshaw as a mentor?

Nick was incredible, he was so supportive and for him to give me a chair was a huge boost of faith. It was just an amazing feeling but I was still having the doubts about myself and I didn’t want to be in the competition when I was having those doubts because I would have just sunk. Nick is a fantastic mentor and I really want to thank him for all his support.

Seeing as the public were such strong supporters of you during the 6 Chair Challenge, do you have a message for your fans?

I want to thank everybody who did support me, the entire audience at the 6 Chair Challenge, all the people all over Britain who were watching the 6 Chair Challenge at home and sending me kind messages of support. I want to thank them and I want them to know it’s not the end. Fingers crossed, I’ve got to work on myself and find where I really want to go and and get stronger and stronger and I hope they will follow me.

What has been your personal highlight through this whole process?

My highlight was definitely my first audition when Rita and Nick gave me a standing ovation in front of the whole of Wembley Arena. That was the highlight of my career so far, that was like the first validation that I’d had. It was a beautiful moment.

Who are you backing now you’ve decided to withdraw from the competition?

I’m rooting for Ché (Chesterman) and Josh Daniel. They are both really genuine people, really great and their talent speaks for themselves – they’ve got incredible voices.

What does the future hold for you?

For me right now, I’m just going to be exploring different avenues, seeing where I want to take myself musically, maybe try writing a few songs – see what happens. Nothing is set in stone, but I had to make this decision, it was a hard decision but it had to be done. I had to follow what I believed in. I had to follow my heart.

Final thoughts?

This isn’t the end, it’s just a new beginning. It just wasn’t right for me at this time. Things change and I really appreciate the opportunity from The X Factor – it was a really big deal and the fact that I was able to come on the show and sing, it was an incredible experience.