Joe McElderry has offered words of advice to the winners of this year's X Factor, Little Mix, and runner up, Marcus Collins. 

The talented vocalist won the contest himself back in 2009, but was dropped from Simon Cowell's SyCo label earlier this year in April. Despite this setback, McElderry has found a new deal and even won Popstar to Operastar so knows a thing or two about the value of hard work and persistence. 

In an open letter to the new girlband and to runner up Collins, he explained that standing up to music mogul Simon Cowell is an important lesson to learn:

"I know people think Simon Cowell is in control, and yes, sometimes you have to follow what the record company says, but Simon likes people who can stand up to him, who say: ‘I don’t want to do this’, or, ‘I like that song'. It’s about building a working relationship, not who controls who."

"If it doesn’t work out with Simon Cowell’s label there is life after it. I left on good terms — it was just time to move on. My album Wide Awake did well, it went gold and I never felt down about leaving. I was thankful for the opportunity."

He also admitted that remaining close with their mentors would prove beneficial and added that he still speaks to Cheryl Cole from time to time:

"Cheryl Cole was my mentor. We still speak. I loved working with her. She always had an amazing work ethic and said it’s all about being professional, being on time, representing yourself as a professional artist."

Watch his festive video for 'Last Christmas' below: