Simon Cowell is on the hunt for new singing talent - four years after The X Factor was axed.
The ITV show was axed nearly half a decade ago after creating a string of huge names including Leona Lewis, One Direction and many more. Rumours have been swirling that the show is coming back - but Simon has just dropped a brand new music project.
The music mogul has announced he is teaming up with songwriter Max Martin for an upcoming project, which will see them turning to TikTok to try and find the next big singer. The new project is titled StemDrop and is being launched on the social media app.
Speaking to The Sun about his upcoming project, he explained how it works: "Having that first hit song is the most important part of an artist’s career, and also the most difficult part of breaking anyone’s career.
"So this really is at the heart of the idea of StemDrop - just imagine somebody who is on TikTok, trying to get some traction, who now has the ability to make their own version of a song written by the most successful songwriter of our time. It’s very compelling."
Simon insists the person's success will be down to themselves, something which he's tried to install in all his talent show winners.
He added: " This is what I’ve tried to do with our TV shows - you get visibility and then after that, it’s down to you. This is the same kind of process. At the end of the day, using One Direction as an example, once we’d signed them, it was, 'Great. Now what do we do?'"
Simon recalled how he had wanted Britney Spears' huge track Hit Me Baby One More Time for the band Five, who he was managing at the time after TLC turned it down. Max - who is behind that track as well as a number of other chart-topping songs including Shake It Off and I Kissed A Girl - said he wasn't able to as he had promised it to Britney, who was not well known at the time.
Simon was convinced Britney wouldn't be a hit star because of her name, but he was proved wrong when the song was released and instantly catapulted the singing sensation into the dizzy heights of fame.
His new project comes after sources revealed The X Factor was coming back - but on Channel 5.
"As soon as X-Factor was up for grabs, there was interest from a number of the networks. X Factor is one of the most iconic shows in TV history, so it’s no surprise lots of channels were keen," a source said earlier this year of the possibility of the show's return, " The production company had their pick. After a lot of meetings, execs decided to go with Channel 5."
