Nicole Scherzinger has opened up for the first time about her departure from “The X Factor.”
In an interview with Access Hollywood correspondent Tim Vincent on Tuesday, as she announced her new role as Global Brand Ambassador for Herbal Essences, Nicole addressed parting ways with the FOX show.
“What happened?” Tim asked.
“What happened? Well, all I know is that I gave 110 percent to that show,” Nicole told Tim in Los Angeles on Tuesday. “I know everybody’s talking about it, they’re saying good, bad, they love me or hate me, but the one thing you can’t say is that I didn’t give it my all.”
Last week, FOX confirmed that Nicole, fellow judge Paula Abdul and show host Steve Jones would not be back for a second season on Simon Cowell’s singing reality competition, and Nicole told Tim she enjoyed her time on the stateside version.
“I had a wonderful experience on the show,” Nicole continued. “I loved being a part of my ‘X Factor’ family. Nothing could obviously prepare me for everything I had to go through, all the emotions and stuff, but I have no regrets. I’ve always believed in never looking back and just moving forward and I’ve got an amazing year to look forward to.”
Steve famously told Access Hollywood Live’s Billy Bush and Kit Hoover last year that if he did part ways with “The X Factor,” he’d be calling Nicole in hopes of a possible romance.
Nicole told Tim that Steve hasn’t yet reached out, and suggested that if he did, his chances weren’t particularly good.
“No,” she laughed. “He’s like a brother.”
In addition to her new Herbal Essences Global Brand Ambassador gig, Nicole has a host of music-related endeavors in the works now that she isn’t returning to “The X Factor.”
“I’m kicking off with my European headlining tour, I’m leaving in a few days for that,” she said, joking she was “actually doing choreography moves right before we were filming [this interview].”
In addition to her role in the Will Smith box office vehicle “Men in Black 3,” Nicole said she recently felt her passion reignited for musical theater.
“Last year I sang ‘Phantom of the Opera’ for the royal family and for Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber, so that reignited me to want to be back in the theater again, so I think I’m gonna do some more theater work this year,” she said.
“I grew up in musical theater and I’ve always dreamed of playing Christine and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber asked me to play Christine in ‘Phantom of the Opera’ for the royal family at the Royal Variety Show,” Nicole continued. “So I’m gonna get back to theater this year, some more movies and my album is coming out in the U.S. – my ‘Killer Love’ album, so I’m putting the finishing touches on it.”
