Nicole Scherzinger has joked that she did Simon Cowell a big favour when she suggested that solo acts Liam Payne, Louis Tomlinson, Niall Horan, Harry Styles and Zayn Malik form a group.
The former Pussycat Doll light-heartedly said that she feels personally responsible for the success of One Direction after putting them together when she appeared as a guest judge on The X Factor.
Scherzinger explained to Now: "Oh yeah, I helped him out so much when I came on that show. I practically put One Direction together with my hands tied behind my back - just joking!"
The 'Poison' singer is now a judge for The X Factor USA after replacing Cheryl Cole on the panel.
"I'm really excited to be working with Simon again," the 33-year-old said.
One Direction who will release their first song later this year, have admitted that it took them "a long time" to find their lead single.
Watch One Direction perform 'Chasing Cars' live in concert below:
