“Dancing With the Stars” season 10 winner Nicole Scherzinger has a new reality show that’s all about music. The singer shared what it was like working on “Building the Band,” as well as her experience working with One Direction star Liam Payne before his tragic passing.
On “Building the Band,” former Pussycat Dolls member Scherzinger is joined by Kelly Rowland of Destiny’s Child and AJ McLean of Backstreet Boys. Since they are all familiar with being part of a successful singing group, they’re well-versed in the magic of musical collaboration.
The Netflix singing competition also has “similarities to the dating show ‘Love is Blind.'” During a July 21 interview on “The View,” Scherzinger noted that her show “is like that, but it’s for the music version.”
“So, we have these exceptional singers, who actually put themselves in their own bands, but they’ve never seen each other. It’s nothing artificial, nothing to do with appearance — it’s just off of hearing each other sing, going off of musical compatibility, connection, chemistry, talking to them,” the singer explained.
Scherzinger continued, “And it’s like a social experiment, but it works. It’s such an original concept and it’s awesome to watch it unfold before our eyes. It was fascinating to see.”
She added, “It works because, I don’t know, like that love connection, that soul connection, heart connection through music is the biggest thing and it pays off.”
Nicole Scherzinger Recalls Working With Liam Payne on ‘Building the Band’
“The View” co-host Sara Haines noted that “Building the Band” was Payne’s “last project” before he died. Scherzinger reflected that one of her favorite things about the singer was “Liam’s heart.”
“So when you watch the show, you’ll see little glimpses of him after he’s talking or things where you just catch him off guard and it’s when he smiles,” she said. “He smiles with his eyes, it’s like he’s giving you a hug, like he’s embracing you and holding you.”
Scherzinger added, “Liam just had such a beautiful, beautiful heart, and I’m so happy that people get to remember him and see him in his light and in his element, giving back, because he lived it.”
The show paid tribute to Payne at the top of the first episode. “When we came together to film ‘Building the Band’ we never imagined we’d soon be saying goodbye to our friend Liam Payne,” McLean said.
He added, “Liam is a guest judge in later episodes and through his presence, we see his deep love for music and his unwavering commitment to helping others find their voice. It’s through that spirit that we dedicate this series to Liam and his family.”
