| Malibu, California | Enrique Iglesias | Tiger BudbillChrista CollinsElaine GibbsJames Kenney |} Melanie Amaro was initially eliminated from the Girls' category, but was invited back to the competition after Cowell decided he had made a mistake in not including her, bringing the total number of contestants to 17. Acts The final seventeen acts were confirmed as follows; Key: – Winner – Runner-Up Wildcard (Live Shows) Act who died years later. Live shows The first two-and-a-half hour live show aired on a special Tuesday time slot on October 25; which followed the same format as the 2011 series of the UK show with each of the judges narrowing their number of acts down to three, without a public vote. The public vote started with the following performance and results shows starting November 2, which aired on Wednesdays and Thursdays respectively (except for the live shows on November 22 and 23, that aired on Tuesday and Wednesday respectively during Thanksgiving). The two-part finale was held on December 21 and 22. There was no guest performance during the first week. The second live result show featured a performance from Outasight. Jessie J and Willow Smith performed on the third live results show, while the fourth live results show featured a performance from Rihanna. Kelly Clarkson and Bruno Mars performed on the fifth live result show while Tinie Tempah performed on the sixth live result show. Mary J. Blige and Lenny Kravitz performed on the seventh live results show while Florence + The Machine and The X Factor USA judge Nicole Scherzinger performed on the semi-final results show. The final featured performances from Justin Bieber, Leona Lewis, 50 Cent, Stevie Wonder, Pitbull and Ne-Yo. Results summary Color key Act in team Paula Abdul Act in team Simon Cowell Act in team Nicole Scherzinger Act in team L.A. Reid There was no public vote in the first week. Each mentor had to select three of their own acts to advance to the second week. Live show details Week 1 (October 25) There was no public vote in the first week. Instead, each of the judges voted to eliminate one (or two for Cowell) of their own acts. Judges' votes to eliminate Reid: Phillip Lomax – gave no reason. Abdul: The Brewer Boys – gave no reason. Scherzinger: Dexter Haygood – gave no reason. Cowell: Simone Battle and Tiah Tolliver – after Drew and Rachel