"I'm definitely going to perform on the show, I can't wait. I'm in the lab cooking something up right now, you're going to get something new from me," the former Pussycat Doll said. Nicole was a judge for The X Factor UK during the show's ninth and tenth seasons, mentoring season nine winner, James Arthur.
Before returning to The X Factor UK, Nicole made her West End debut in 2014 playing the lead role in the musical Cats. Nicole played the role for 12 weeks until February 2015. She received a Laurence Olivier Award nomination for her portrayal of Grizabella, the character who sang the classic "Memory."
Nicole recalled that she did not think twice about returning to The X Factor UK when the show's creator Simon Cowell invited her to join the 13thseason's panel. "I missed the UK and love my job as a mentor on the show. He said he wanted to have fun this year, so I was like, 'Alright, sign me up!'" the singer said.
Extremely talented
The other judges of the show were excited about the singer-songwriter's return to the The X Factor.
"She can sing, she can act, she can do anything. She can do a show for Lord Webber, the Pussycat Dolls and she can do a song with Drake, there's no end to this girl's talent," The X Factor UK Judge Louis Walsh said.
Walsh, who is also returning as a judge this year, is happy that Nicole chose to return to The X Factor instead of joining the Broadway revival of Cats.
"Nicole made the right decision. Cats on Broadway or X Factor? The X Factor wins. She can do Cats on Broadway in 20 years time because she will still be gorgeous," Walsh added.
Simon also takes pleasure in teasing Scherzinger, making her perform with some of the contestants.
Nicole recalled the instances when Simon would "steal" her ideas during the auditions when Simon would repeat exactly what the singer would say. Simon assures the singer that the episodes would not show the clips where he repeats Nicole's comments and ideas. "He's been stealing pretty much everything, but I take it as a compliment," Nicole said.
A great mentor
Aside from her upcoming performance, the contestants' performances also excite the singer-songwriter.
"It's such an amazing energy from the audience, I love watching our contestants perform, that's what gives me Sch-life! I'm an adrenalin junkie and that's just the ultimate adrenalin rush," said Nicole.
Asked if she's bent on winning, Nicole quipped, "I want to say that winning doesn't matter but I'm the most competitive person you will ever meet. So watch your back Simon Cowell!"
But Nicole wants to enjoy every single minute of The X Factor UK, she takes her role as judge and mentor seriously. "I just want to make sure everything is at its best, otherwise what are we doing? We're wasting our time and we don't do that, we're always looking for greatness. I'm going to do everything I can to help my contestants be great," she said.
The X Factor UK airs same day as the UK Sundays and Mondays, 9:30am with primetime encores on Sundays, Mondays and Thursdays at 8pm, first and exclusive on RTL CBS Entertainment.