So it appears that we all have Leona Lewis to thank for all the contrived bust-ups and boo-hoo sob stories remaining on our screens on a Saturday night.
For despite being arguably the dullest pop star on the planet, Simon Cowell has singled out the ‘Bleeding Love’ singer for saving the fortunes of The X-Factor following her win back in 2006.
Speaking via a video message at Tuesday’s Sony Music’s Company Day, the media mogul admitted that the then 21-year-old gave the series an air of credibility which unsurprisingly previous winners Steve Brookstein and Shayne Ward hadn’t:
“When we created X Factor, it was more than a television show. The idea behind it was to discover real stars.
“When I think of our biggest success on X Factor, initially, one person changed the perception of the show worldwide and her name is Leona Lewis. You literally saved our show.
“I dreamt of finding a superstar. I’ll never forget Leona’s first audition, I’ll never forget the call from Clive Davies when you were on the live shows and you have transformed into a global superstar.”
Of course, Lewis’ career has rather stuttered of late. The release of her third album was postponed by a year following the poor reaction to Avicii-sampling single, ‘Collide.’ Her subsequent covers E.P. spent just one week inside the Top 40, while Emeli Sande recently appears to have stolen her MOR soul crown.
However, during the same speech, Cowell insisted that her upcoming belated studio effort, ‘Glassheart,’ will see her back on top:
“It’s been two years since we heard a Leona record, I think this new album is sensational, you’ve never sounded better.”
Let’s just hope that it’s more exciting than her recent stint as an X-Factor guest judge.
