Thursday, September 13, 2012 8:50am ET by  
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Simon Cowell credits Leona Lewis with saving The X-Factor

Simon Cowell has credited Leona Lewis for saving The X-Factor.

The media mogul, who was speaking via a video message at Sony Music’s company day on Tuesday, said that the 2006 winner was instrumental in helping the show to realise its ambition:

“When we created X Factor, it was more than a television show. The idea behind it was to discover real stars.

“When I think of our biggest success on X Factor, initially, one person changed the perception of the show worldwide and her name is Leona Lewis. You literally saved our show.”

The 52-year-old, who was last night seen on the opening episode of the second season of The X-Factor USA, also went on to praise Lewis’ upcoming third studio effort, ‘Glassheart.’

“I dreamt of finding a superstar. I’ll never forget Leona’s first audition, I’ll never forget the call from Clive Davies when you were on the live shows and you have transformed into a global superstar.

"It’s been two years since we heard a Leona record, I think this new album is sensational, you’ve never sounded better.”

 

 

 

Watch Leona Lewis perform Trouble below: