This time last year, 16-year-old Janet Devlin was the favourite to scoop a £1 million recording contract on The X Factor.
However, The Northern Irish singer-songwriter ended up finishing in fifth place; though it hasn't deterred her from continuing with music.
Digital Spy caught up with Janet to talk about her new material, plans for her online gig on October 26 and how she felt after leaving The X Factor.
You've been working on new material; what can you tell us about what you've recorded so far?
"On the show, I wouldn't say I didn't talk that much but I didn't let people know too much about me. The songs I do are quite personal and all the lyrics are done by me, it's quite an intimate album I'd say."
Does it reflect on your time before the X Factor or during the during the competition?
"I obviously wrote songs before the show but I just took some old songs and updated them to make them into modern versions."
Are there any songs on the album that you're excited for fans to hear in particular?
"Yes there are a couple. I mean there's some of them that I just really really like, I mean I like all of them but some of them they mean a lot to me so I hope they mean a lot to everyone else."
Will you be releasing EPs or a full album?
"We were thinking about doing an EP but we're just gonna do a whole album. We're also doing the Musicality online gig, which is kind of - in a way - an EP, but with all original content. It's still all in that EP/demo-y kind of form."
Why did you decide to debut your new music via the Musicality i-cast?
"There's fans from around the world and so I thought if we did an online gig we'd actually get everyone involved. It's not fair just doing a gig in London and being far away from people that can't actually be there, so with the webcast you can get everyone from anywhere in one place."
Do your new songs have quite a live sound? Is that why you wanted to perform them live before releasing the studio versions?
"I love the studio versions and I love the track versions for different reasons. I like doing the live versions because there is a jump point that's got Native American beats and jungle stomps to it and it only really works well with a band, so there's going to be literally two different versions."
We were going to ask what kind of sound the album is taking on...
"It's quite hard to describe. It's quite alternative but I definitely wouldn't say alternative rock. It's a different sound, but I can't really describe it."
You've been working with Newton Faulkner and Joshua Radin; what were they like to work with?
"It didn't feel real! I felt like I was just been dragged along to places. Newton was very special to me because I've loved his music for years so to be in the same room as him and writing music with him for a couple of days was pretty much a dream come true."
When can we expect to hear the new songs?
"You might have to ask me in a few months because there's nothing coming out just yet, I don't think."
Obviously we're going to hear you perform them online soon anyway...
"I think there's some chat about people buying a DVD of the online gig, but I think after the gig it'll be finalising the tracks and finalising the album. I don't think it'll be on YouTube or anything."
You left The X Factor last December - did you expect to go on and do what you've done?
"When I came out of the show I was a little bit lost, I didn't know what I was going to do. We had the tour after the show and it was literally after the tour I kind of woke up and I felt like I could start a career now. It was quite a shock waking up and realising that you have to work your butt off to make an album. I kind of knew something would come out of it, so I'm just glad that it's coming out this way."
Have you sent any of your material to your former mentor Kelly Rowland for feedback?
"I haven't sent her any material yet. I'm kinda scared! But I'll probably wait until the songs are done and they're done well, then I'll probably send her over one of the tracks."
So the album could possibly be out in the New Year, but can we expect some tour dates from you too?
"Yeah, we've got a tour lined up after the album. I would love to do a festival, that would be brilliant. I'd love to do Glastonbury that would be very special."
Janet Devlin will perform her new material as part of a worldwide Musicality i-cast on Friday October 26. Click here for more information.
>Win! Meet and greet with Janet Devlin
Watch Janet Devlin perform 'Your Song' during her first on the The X Factor 2011 below:
