Finally! Finally, 'X Factor' gave us exactly what audiences everywhere have been waiting for on tonight's (Sept. 19) episode. After allowing just so-so talent to pass through to the next round with flying colors, we were greeted by Tate Stevens, the season's first country singer!

Clad in jeans, a button-down, and a bright white cowboy hat, Stevens just wanted to make his 11-year-old daughter proud. His country twang was evident the moment he opened his mouth, but in classic 'X Factor' fashion, we weren't quite sure how he'd fare during his audition.

But Stevens made the stage his own the moment he stepped foot on it. Sweet and polite, he unexpectedly started making funny jokes and witty remarks, leaving Demi Lovato to exclaim out loud more than once that he was a funny guy. And so began his rendition of Randy Houser's 'Anything Goes,' and the crowd went ballistic.

Immediately cheering on the country star, it was obvious he had found fans in L.A. Reid, Britney Spears, Louis Walsh, and of course, Lovato. "The moment he opened his mouth, there was an American star," said Reid after his audition.

"You're so likable, you're so funny, and then you blew me away with your voice," said Lovato to the now grinning and red-faced Stevens. Walsh echoed Lovato's statements and added that he had "an authentic country voice," and Spears, after much thought, looked up to Stevens and said, "You're my favorite so far," which was met with thunderous applause. "You're my favorite and I love you," she continued.

 

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