Especially in recent years, Nicole Scherzinger has proven versatility is the key to staying power and success in the entertainment world. It also happens to be her secret to Hollywood success, having accumulated an estimated net worth of $14 million today.
Without a doubt, Scherzinger put in a lot of hard work to get to where she is. And her story can serve as an inspiration to fans all over.
She Started Out As A Pussycat Doll
Founded by Robin Antin, The Pussycat Dolls started out as a dance troupe before evolving into a pop group. It was a meeting with Gwen Stefani and music executives (including Jimmy Iovine) that convinced her to reinvent them. Just like that, The Pussycat Dolls started working with various producers, songwriters, and stylist. While speaking with LA Weekly, Antin recalled that “there were 5 million people involved” all of a sudden.
The group soon launched a number of hit songs. These include Don’t Cha, Stickwitu, and Buttons (which celebrated its 15th anniversary this year). Through it all, Scherzinger served as the group’s lead singer. In fact, she estimates that she “probably did 95 percent” of the group’s vocals “on my own.” The group’s executive producer confirmed as much during a VH1 Behind the Music special. “Melody [Thornton] sang a bit here and there, but the records were Nicole, with the exception of an occasional ad-lib,” Fair revealed. “They were Nicole. It was her.”
The Pussycat Dolls officially disbanded in 2010. While speaking with Ryan Seacrest, Scherzinger explained they decided to split since several group members preferred to “do their own projects and stuff.” She added, “It’s not easy. I love it, and I am grateful for it. But I think that it’s just time for people to do their own thing.” And that’s exactly what Scherzinger did.
She Booked Several Television Gigs
Soon after The Pussycat Dolls split, Scherzinger was named a judge on the show The Xtra Factor. Around the same time, she also became a judge on The X Factor and The X Factor UK where she stayed on for several seasons. According to reports, Scherzinger went on to become the highest paid judge on the show, as her salary was reported to be over £1.8million (approximately $2.5 million) for a single season. Later on, the singer also agreed to serve as a judge across other ‘X Factor’ shows. At the same time, she also served as a judge on Australia’s Got Talent.
In 2019, Scherzinger also became a panelist on Fox’s latest talent show, The Masked Singer. Of the show’s unique concept, she told ET, “I just love the fact that these contestants feel like the world has judged them [or] feel like the world places a lot of judgment on them, and they want to be able to share who they really are. Not by what they think they are but who they are in their heart.” While Fox never disclosed any salary details, it is believed that Scherzinger managed to secure quite a lucrative deal for herself.
She’s Landed Several Film Roles Too
Aside from serving as a judge or panelist on various tv shows, Scherzinger also ventured into film from time to time. After all, acting had always been one of her passions. “I actually went to college for theater so it’s nice to be able to utilize some of those chops finally,” she told Crave Online. “I really want to get back into a film and acting.”
In 2012, Scherzinger memorably appeared in the sci-fi film Men in Black 3. Granted, she only appears in the first few minutes of the film but the singer says she “had to create a whole other character for this role.” “In order to do that I had to pull from the rock star inside of me and create this whole diva, like this whole action bad girl kind of character,” Scherzinger further explained.
Several years, Scherzinger also tried her hand at voice acting when she joined the cast of Disney’s Moana alongside then-newcomer Auli'i Cravalho and Dwayne Johnson. Being of Hawaiian descent herself, the project definitely felt personal to Scherzinger. “I felt I had to be a part of the project, and that’s because I’m from Hawaiian descent, so I knew that the movie was gonna be about the Polynesian people. And, I don’t think Disney ever really did a film like that,” she told Whisky + Sunshine.
Later on, Scherzinger took to voice acting again when she took a small role as Mo’s Mom in the 2018 film Ralph Breaks the Internet. Because of her involvement in the film, some fans were under the impression that there was a Moana Easter egg in the movie. However, as co-director Phil Johnston told Entertainment Weekly, “So, her name is Mo, and Moana’s mom does do the voice. But she’s not Moana.”
She Was Set To Reunite With The Rest Of The Pussycat Dolls
Despite her busy schedule these days, Scherzinger agreed to participate in a Pussycat Dolls reunion tour. Those plans, however, has since been put on hold indefinitely after Antin filed a lawsuit against Scherzinger.
Antin alleges that Scherzinger “now refuses to participate in the tour” unless she controls 75 percent of the decision-making. In response, Scherzinger’s lawyer, Howard King, revealed to The Hollywood Reporter the singer had already “invested her own funds in excess of $150,000” to support the tour. Scherzinger had briefly reunited with her group in 2019 for a performance on U.K.’s The X Factor. And it seems that’s as close to a reunion as they are going to get.
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