X Factor's Mason Noise insists he's not – and never has been – "a signed artist"
Nick Grimshaw's act says there's nothing wrong with having a "back catalogue" as his previous music videos come to light: "You shouldn't penalise someon for being a hustler"
X Factor act Mason Noise has responded to claims his position in the competition is unfair given his level of previous experience, saying he's never been signed and that the show shouldn't "penalise someone for being a hustler".
The singer's Vevo account shows two professional-looking videos, one with more than 100,000 views.
Mason has posted links to more music on Twitter and shared snaps with celebrities, including former X Factor contestant Aston Merrygold.
The videos on his Vevo account are accredited to Ambition Worldwide Entertainment, but Mason told RadioTimes.com he's "not a signed artist" adding that he hasn't been in the past either.
"The truth is that I have my own little brand which I put on my videos. I’m not a signed artist. I don’t think you should penalise someone for being a hustler.
"I’ve been working, that’s what I do. I make my own videos," the 22-year-old added. "Just because I haven’t come on to this programme unprepared and thought, 'Let's give it a shot', doesn’t mean I’m a bad person for that, or that it’s unfair. This is like 0 to 100 in this competition. This is like shoot, shoot to the top in a matter of a weeks. So if you ain’t prepared for that, I feel sorry for you."
Mason, who's part of Nick Grimshaw's Boys category, says he's done his share of "unglamorous" work to get experience.
"I’ve driven four hours to Newcastle in my own car, done three gigs in a night and driven straight back to London to do two more shows the next night. Been in clubs where people have thrown things at me and people have been drunk. I was on stage once performing and someone came up to me and asked me for a pound. He literally walked on stage."
"I’m a hard worker and I’ll always push for what I believe in and work," he continued. "Just because I’ve got a back catalogue, what does that mean?"
Of whether that back catalogue included ever being signed Mason insisted, "No", adding that he's not made any money off of the videos either, "yet".
"It's not that easy", he said.
Speaking about whether the reports will play on his mind during this weekend's performance Mason said he's seeing the positives: "It's dragging people to my videos."
The X Factor continues tonight Saturday 7th November at 8pm on ITV
