Cher Lloyd credits late Liam Payne for helping her in tough times

Cher Lloyd just recalled her time on the X Factor and her bond with the late Liam Payne.

The singer was introduced into the music world back in 2010 when she took the stage of the reality series, impressing the audience with her version of the song, Turn My Swag On by Keri Hilson.

She finished fourth on the X Factor and the signed with Simon Cowell's record label, releasing two studio albums and her hit single Swagger Jagger.

In a conversation with BBC Newsbeat, Cher did say that music remains "everything" to her and is glad to be "spilling the tea" over her new work, Head Down.

"I was on such a huge reality TV show and the experience that I had was just a rollercoaster of emotions," she said, adding, "I just felt like I needed to get a lot of stuff off my chest.”

The With Your Love crooner continued, "Head Down for me was a way to do that without blurting it all out and getting in trouble."

Now the she thinks of her time on the X Factor, she called it a "shock to the system".

"I had this illusion that the show was just going to be about singing and performing and I didn't realise that 80 or 90% of it was reality TV," Cher mentioned.

She had gotten a rather tough time from the press during her time as a contestant as she was branded a “diva” making a lot of the audience go against her.

Cher got a tough time from the tabloid press during her time on the show - with stories about "diva" behaviour turning some of the audience against the teenager, admitting she was quite “sad” having gotten that label

"That was never my intention," she told the outlet, further saying, "That's why you saw me spiral and make bad decisions.”

Cher Lloyd then explained how One Direction alum, Liam Payne, who passed way on October 16, 2024, helped her through tough times, "He was always the level-headed one.”

"He looked after everyone and he had this nurturing energy. And the passion that he had for performing was just unmatched. I don't think I've spoken about it like this before, but the talent he had was just unbelievable,” she further said of Liam Payne.