- published: 23 Mar 2012
- views: 22607685
Tula Paulinea "Tulisa" Contostavlos (born 13 July 1988), often known mononymously as Tulisa, is an English singer-songwriter and actress. She is best known for being a member of the now defunct Camden-based hip hop group N-Dubz, with her cousin Dappy and their friend Fazer formed in 2000 and together releasing three studio albums before announcing their hiatus in 2011. Contostavlos is currently a judge on the The X Factor and mentored the "Groups" category in her first year including Little Mix, the first ever group to win the competition to date. Contostavlos will release her debut solo album in the summer of 2012. On 16 March 2012 during a Twitter dispute with her cousin and bandmate Dappy Contostavlos announced that N-Dubz had in fact split up and were not taking a break as stated in 2011.
Contostavlos was born in Camden Town, North London, to an Irish mother, Anne Byrne (who, with her three sisters, was a member of the 1980s band Jeep) and a Greek Cypriot father, Steve Contostavlos (part of Mungo Jerry). When Tulisa was five, her mother, who has bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder, was sectioned under the Mental Health Act. Contostavlos' father left the family home when Tulisa was 14 years old. She said that she was brought up in a 3 bedroom house and experienced a lot as a teenager: violence, depression, drug abuse, alcohol abuse, anorexia nervosa, mental health issues, financial difficulties and bullying.
Simon Phillip Cowell (born 7 October 1959) is an English A&R executive, television producer, entrepreneur, and television personality. He is known in the United Kingdom and United States for his role as a talent judge on TV shows such as Pop Idol, The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and American Idol. He is also the owner of the television production and music publishing house Syco.
As a judge, Cowell is known for his blunt and often controversial criticisms, insults and wisecracks about contestants and their abilities. He is also known for combining activities in both the television and music industries, having promoted singles and records for various artists, including television personalities. He was most recently featured on the fifth series of Britain's Got Talent and the first season of The X Factor USA.
In 2010, the British magazine New Statesman listed Cowell at number 41 in a list of "The World's 50 Most Influential Figures 2010".
Cowell was born in Lambeth, London and brought up in Elstree, Hertfordshire. His mother, Julie Brett (née Josie Dalglish), is a former ballet dancer and socialite, and his father, Eric Selig Phillip Cowell (1918–1999), was an estate agent developer and music industry executive. Cowell's father was from a mostly Jewish family, though he did not discuss his background with his children (Cowell's paternal grandmother had immigrated from Poland). Cowell's mother was from a Christian background, and is of part Scottish descent. He has one brother and three half-brothers and a half sister; younger brother Nicholas Cowell, half-brother John Cowell, half-brother Tony Cowell, half-brother Michael Cowell and half sister June Cowell.