LA Reid once stated that he is a “man of principle” and that he would always stand by his guys so it was no surprise when he announced that he had signed all three of his ‘The X Factor (US)’ finalists to Epic Records. Indeed, Chris Rene, Marcus Canty and Astro have all been added to the roster of the expanding label’s roster.

Joining ‘X Factor (US)’ winner Melanie Amaro at Epic are singer/songwriter Rene, Bobby Brown fan Canty and the talented yet egotistical rapper Astro. All of the acts have reportedly started recording material for their debut albums and have expressed excitement about working with Reid.

Speaking of Amaro, she has been quite busy working on an album that would reflect the various sides of her artistry. At the start of the year, she visited BET’s ’106 & Park’ and noted that she was eager to hit the studio with her idol, Mariah Carey, to record a duet with the icon.

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All of these acts have the potential to be successful with the right material and marketing but Canty definitely causes some concern. Throughout the season he was compared to Bobby Brown and Usher, and none of the judges listed him among the acts that demonstrated distinct originality.

Furthermore, there is a strange similarity between Canty and Jason Derulo that is difficult to overlook. If Canty does indeed follow the career path of the latter then his time at Epic would be short unless Reid would be comfortable with steady single sales without any movement on the album charts.

Photo by The X Factor USA

Thoughts?