Nicole Scherzinger opened up about the challenges that came with being a member of the iconic girl group.
Nicole Scherzinger is recalling her hectic schedule as a member of the Pussycat Dolls.
In a new interview with The Sunday Times, the 46-year-old singer and actress opened up about her experience with the legendary girl group, on which she served as its lead singer from 2003 to 2010. She reunited with the group in 2020 and they were set to embark on a reunion tour before the pandemic -- and later a lawsuit with the group's founder -- derailed those plans.
And while she says she's "really proud" of the music the group put out (releasing only two albums but selling more than 55 million records), Scherzinger says she found her experience with the group "profoundly overwhelming."
"I'm really proud of the music that the Dolls made, and I'm very proud of the little mark that we made with our group," she says. "But it was very difficult, because I was really learning about myself along the way."
Scherzinger was 25 when she joined Melody Thornton, Carmit Bachar, Ashley Roberts, Jessica Sutta and Kimberly Wyatt to form the famous group. In an instant, not only was Scherzinger tasked with carrying the group vocally (she's the lone member to have songwriting credits for the group's 2005 debut album, PCD), but she also became the face of the group, and, in turn, a sex symbol. All of which exacerbated her body dysmorphia and accentuated her insecurities.
"In the beginning, that was my biggest issue. The other girls were dancers first. So as dancers, you dance modern, and when you're in class you're pretty much dressed in underwear," she explains. "A dancer's body is the instrument; it's beautiful. That's the art. But I was a singer first. It was difficult for me in the beginning because I didn't feel comfortable in my skin."
As if that wasn't already enough of a challenge, there was a severe lack of sleep.
"It was such a difficult time, struggling and battling your own demons and issues and always being on the road, and they never allowed sleep in our schedule. I mean, it was just a recipe for disaster, to be honest with you," she says. "It's a lot different now. They have rules set in place and, you know, it's more of a woke community now. But it wasn't like that when we were doing it. It was just kind of like, 'Work them to the bone until they're passed out.' It was just hard for me to sleep. I always had sleeping issues."
Scherzinger is currently engaged to rugby player Thom Evans, who is "reprogramming" her brain when it comes to getting enough ZZZs because he really likes to sleep.
"He's kind of reprogramming my mind and helping me try to sleep more," she said. "I'm loving sleep now."
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