Nicole Scherzinger ; born Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente; June 29, 1978) is an American singer, dancer, actress and television personality. After reaching one-hit wonder success with girl group Eden's Crush, she signed with Interscope Records in 2003 as a member of the Pussycat Dolls, a burlesque troupe-turned-recording act. During her time as lead singer, Scherzinger generated controversy concerning the emphasis of her role in the group. The group established themselves as a prominent girl group with the release of their debut album, PCD (2005) which spawned the number one hits "Don't Cha" and "Stickwitu". A hiatus saw the cancellation of a solo album.
The group's second and final studio album, Doll Domination (2008) spawned the worldwide hits "When I Grow Up" and "I Hate This Part" and a collaboration with A. R. Rahman on a pop version of "Jai Ho" entitled "Jai Ho! (You Are My Destiny)" from Slumdog Millionaire(2008), established Scherzinger as a solo artist. Following her departure, Scherzinger won season ten of Dancing with the Stars (2010). In 2011 she released her long-delayed debut studio album, Killer Love to moderate success and featured singles "Don't Hold Your Breath" and "Right There". Scherzinger left Interscope Records in late 2013, signed a multi-million dollar contract with Sony Music Entertainment and released her second studio album, Big Fat Lie (2014). From 2012 to 2013, Scherzinger served as a judge on the UK version of The X Factor and won with James Arthur in her first year; Scherzinger was also a judge for one season on the American X Factor in 2011. As an actress she appeared in films such as Men in Black 3 (2011) and received critical acclaim for her performances inRent (2010) and her West End debut starring as Grizabella for the revival of the musicalCats (2014–15) for which she received a nomination for Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role in a Musical.