Max George is a singer and former member of The Wanted. Before joining the band, he auditioned for The X Factor twice, as a soloist on Series 2 and in a group, Avenue, in Series 3. He was succesful on both occasions, with the second one being more notorious, since Avenue was actually through to the live shows. However, with the reveal of a contract that the group had previously signed, they were disqualified from the competition and replaced by Eton Road.