10 THINGS YOU DON’T KNOW ABOUT NICOLE SCHERZINGER
VOCALIST Nicole Scherzinger got her first serious taste of the spotlight in 2001 through The WB’s Popstars, which saw her become part of the short-lived girl group Eden’s Crush. Since then, the Pussycat Dolls frontwoman and solo recording artist, 43, has continued to dip her toes into reality TV by judging The X Factor, winning Dancing with the Stars in 2010 and serving as a panelist on The Masked Singer. Here are ten things you don’t know about the Honoluluborn beauty.
1
Her birth name was Nicole Prascovia Elikolani Valiente, but she acquired her current surname after being adopted as a kid by her mother’s husband, Gary Scherzinger.
2
Though her family moved to Kentucky when she was six, she still considers Hawaii home.
3
The 5-foot-5 performer wishes she were taller but says, “A great pair of heels makes me feel sexier and more confident.”
4
Coconut oil is one of her beauty musthaves.
5
She considers French designer Coco Chanel her ultimate style icon, but also admires how Jennifer Lopez’s and Gwen Stefani’s fashion choices complement their music.
6
Black Eyed Peas founder will.i.am claims he asked her to join the musical group in 2001 — but her then-fiancé, 311 lead singer Nick Hexum, nixed the deal.
7
She battled the eating disorder bulimia for nearly a decade during her Pussycat Dolls heyday, but sought help after being told her constant purging was hurting her singing voice.
8
She’s of Filipino, Native Hawaiian, Ukrainian and Polish descent, but played a Puerto Rican character in the 2003 comedy Chasing Papi.
9
In Disney’s 2016 animated flick Moana, she voiced the Polynesian title character’s mom and adds, “I didn’t want to go back home and hear from family, ‘How come you’re not in Moana?’ ”
10
Her favorite cake is red velvet with cream cheese frosting.