Paula Abdul Tells ‘X Factor’ Contestant Ashley Deckard ‘I See Ghosts Too’

After 14-year-old contestant Ashley Deckard left the stage, things on Thursday night's episode of 'X Factor' got a little creepy. Her performance of Jessie J's 'Price Tag' was mediocre at best, and the four judges quickly dismissed her. Over the next several auditions, the cast and crew began hearing unexplainable howls and growls.

Deckard admitted that in addition to singing, she liked to ghost hunt. "I can see ghosts, and I like ghost hunting," the teen said. She had similarly aged auditioners convinced before walking onstage. The girls squealed when she said one ghost even growled at her once. Judge Simon Cowell seemed interested if not skeptical, but Paula Abdul brushed aside the spooky hobby as as commonplace as knitting or stamp collecting.

"I see ghosts too," Abdul said to Deckard's delight. When she finally got a chance to sing, the best part of her appearance on the show had been wasted. L.A. Reid was impressed by her pop-goth look and ghost stories, but not the music. "I'm fascinated by you on many, many levels, but the singing was the least of them," Reid said.

At first, the ghostly sounds seemed a part of some creative production, but later crew members seemed genuinely perplexed by the noises. All was forgotten after the next commercial break, however. Unfortunately for Deckard, she was forgotten as well.