X Factor judge Stan Walker. Photo / Supplied
You don't have to be an avid viewer of The X Factor New Zealand to know it's been a tough week behind the scenes.
Husband-and-wife judging duo Natalia Kills and Willy Moon made international headlines with their wannabe Bonnie and Clyde live-to-air diatribe after contestant Joe Irvine's rendition of Cry Me A River last Sunday. What started with Kills calling Irvine a doppelganger of her husband descended into vicious nonsense about intellectual property rights, artistic integrity and then the knock-out punch from Moon - likening 25-year-old Irvine from Invercargill to Psycho killer Norman Bates.
The next day, fellow judge Melanie Blatt made her opinions clear on Twitter. "I've tried to keep my cool and stay professional, but sorry love, you're a twat."
Stan Walker followed it up by posting a video on Instagram. "Aotearoa, I am so sorry for this disgusting behavior on X Factor. Girl you better say sorry."
So fast and ferocious was the public uproar, Kills and Moon were gone by mid-afternoon, and flew out for the States Tuesday night, leaving Blatt and Walker to pick up the pieces.
A few days on and Walker has had more time to digest Sunday's events and the fallout.
"It's just sad, really. Their actions took away from what the contestants had worked so hard for. The show isn't about us, the judges. It's about our contestants and they deserve to be judged on their performances," Walker says.
A week or so earlier, I'd had coffee with Walker in Auckland and left the cafe with warm fuzzies. He's funny and witty; polite and respectful; smart and savvy. He's also insightful and wise beyond his years.
That might not fit with the "cheeky chappy" image many have of him from the first series of X Factor where his colourful "brocabulary" triggered more tweets during a live episode than his abilities as a judge and mentor.
But at just 25, Walker has achieved more than most. And we're not just talking about his role on the TV3 talent show.
We're talking a handful of number one hits, four critically acclaimed albums, his stellar acting debut in the movie Mt Zion and now, as he reveals, a plan to help kids just like he was.
"Dummies at school, but creative," he jokes, as he explains he's in talks to establish a school in Auckland for budding singers, dancers, actors and those interested in the production side of the entertainment business.
"I'm more excited this year, knowing what I'm going to get into and knowing what I want to achieve more than just The X Factor, because I'm starting a performing arts school.
And if it wasn't for me being a part of the show, I wouldn't have realised that my heart and my passion has always been for my people, people like me."
He pauses and takes time to consider his words. "I want to create something for them. Not everybody goes to uni. Kids like me and where I come from, they ain't going to uni. I want to create something for them so it becomes their home, so they can excel and take that into real life and get paid to do what they're good at."
Walker could quite easily have said no to signing up to The X Factor for a second time. He loves his own bed at home in Sydney and openly admits he's not paid nearly as much on this side of the Tasman, so not gigging in Australia for months on end while he's committed to the show here ultimately means less money in the bank.
There is also the worry he feels when he's out of the public eye in Australia for too long.
"My home is there. Most things I do are there. And three months in an artist's life, when you're working constantly, is like a year in the entertainment world," he says.
"I didn't realise how much of a sacrifice of my time it was going to be," he says, referring to series one. "So it was a hard decision [coming back]. To make the money I want to make, I have to be in Australia.
"New Zealand unfortunately doesn't have the money Australia has. It has everything else, but we need money to live, and I want to live good," he laughs.
In that moment you catch a glimpse of the fun-loving Walker that shone so brightly on season one, although he says he is "more serious" this time. He was visibly shocked when Kills launched her attack on Irvine. He tried to interject, pointing out that the British singer had in fact stolen her image from Cleopatra. And on the Monday night, as he and Blatt cut two lonely figures on the judging panel, Walker looked almost like a possum in headlights, mortified by the goings-on.
He now wants to put it all behind him and focus on the young singers he is on the show to mentor - Nyssa Collins, Finlay Robertson and Lili Bayliss.
His eyes light up with excitement when the topic of "Stan's girls" comes up and he fizzes as he talks through each of their qualities.
"What people see on TV is just a glimpse. Like Finlay, she has the biggest voice in this competition. Nyssa has been the best consistently out of all the girls. From her audition, to boot camp, to judges' retreats, she's been constant. And Lili blew me away. She was the one I didn't even factor into my top three, or even top six. Just wait. Lili is going to blow people away."
Having been on both sides of the panel as an Australian Idol contestant in 2009 and a judge on The X Factor New Zealand in 2013, Walker reckons he's got the system sussed.
"I've kind of figured out how people vote. I'm not going to tell you what I'm thinking," he laughs, "but I'm here to play the game."
It's this kind of fighting talk that got Walker where he is. He went on to win Australian Idol and carved out a highly successful career on both sides of the Tasman with hits Black Box, Unbroken and Choose You.
But he knows not everyone wants the prize as much as he did. And not everyone will work as hard as he did, and still does. And it's those ones, he says, who won't make it in the music business.
That's why he's determined to push his contestants as hard as he can. He reiterates that if you ever feel comfortable, you're chasing the wrong dream.
"I'm never comfortable. The moment I feel like I'm comfortable, I feel like my career and life is over. I know that feels so deep and dramatic, but the moment I have a day or two off that I'm not prepared for I have a mini mental breakdown. I'm like 'What am I doing with my life?'
"I don't want them to ever get comfortable. You don't get into this business to be comfortable. That's not my buzz and I don't want that to be their buzz.
"But I'm only going from my experience and what I know of this industry and I'm trying to keep them on their toes."
There's also the compassionate and caring side to Walker. He's concerned about Finlay, who has vocal cord nodules.
"That's scary because this is a singing show. I'm worried about her. It's a struggle for her," he says. He is also mindful of what's in store for his young mentees if they pursue a career in music. "Unfortunately, it's a game we're in and it's stupid. The music industry has more politics than politics. And, for girls, I'm trying to prepare them for reality.
"Girls get so much more flak and judgment than boys. It's body image; you wear the wrong dress and you're at the forefront of every mock. It's horrible. I mean, we get it too, but women, some women get told to get boob jobs and they might be thin but they get told to be skinnier. I'm trying to teach them to own what they have.
"You have to play the game. You have to compromise some things but don't ever compromise your morals. You need to be inspirational but be aspirational
as well."
They're wise words from a guy who's not too much older than some of the young women he's mentoring. But Walker has earned his stripes and he too has dealt with the knocks.
"I get called all sorts of things, 'dick head', 'you faggot', 'I hate you, you can't sing', 'you're a fat thing'. That's all good, but when they're wrong, that's when I get mad."
As for Walker's special lingo? Well, that's here to stay. "I've been out of school for almost 10 years this year. I didn't go to school to learn, I went to school because I had to and I ate everybody else's lunch.
"I've been told that my favourite word is 'yous'. Like 'how are yous?' There are people who have great grammar - not me, because I can't spell. But really? Do people really care about that?" he asks.
"As I tell my girls, if you've got no one hating on you, you're doing nothing. My goal as a judge is to be part of creating artists who are going to have careers, actual careers. I'm trying to teach them things and show them what the reality is.
"All three of these girls are driven, and they're talented, too. They know their strengths and they know their weaknesses. My goal is to push them further to know they're stronger than their strengths."
It's a philosophy that's done Walker well. He's not on The X Factor to lord it over the contestants. He's been there himself. He's there to genuinely help Kiwi singers who need a step up, and that's exactly what he intends to do.
The X Factor screens on TV3 Sundays at 7pm and Mondays at 7.30pm.
The Kiwi actor has been part of the Star Wars universe for more than 20 years.