Nicole Prescovia Elikolani Valiente Scherzinger (born June 29, 1978) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer and occasional actress who is best known as the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls.

Previously, Scherzinger was a backing vocalist for the late-1990s rock group Days of the New, then she was part of reality TV girl group Eden's Crush. After the disbandment of the group she joined the Pussycat Dolls and became the lead vocalist during the transition to a popular music group. So far, the Pussycat Dolls have released two albums, PCD and Doll Domination, with two supporting tours. More recently, in early 2010, Scherzinger became the winner of the tenth season of Dancing with the Stars.

Nicole Scherzinger was born on June 29, 1978 in Honolulu, Hawaii. Her father, Alfonso Valiente, is of Filipino descent, and her mother, Rosemary, is of Hawaiian, Ukrainian, and Russian descent. In an interview, Scherzinger said: "I’m Filipino-Russian-Hawaiian, but people think I’m from Pakistan". Her mother Rosemary was eighteen at the time of Scherzinger's birth and lived in an inner city neighborhood. Nicole's parents separated when she was still a baby. Her maternal family moved to Louisville, Kentucky when she was six years old, with her sister Ke'ala and her German American stepfather Gary Scherzinger.

In an interview with The Daily Mail, Scherzinger explained that she had been brought up with a strict religious (Catholic) upbringing in Hawaii. She first attended Meyzeek Middle School as an adolescent. Growing up, Scherzinger states that she didn't have a lot of money and the singer thanks her mom for all the support she gave her to become what she is today. Scherzinger began performing in Louisville, attending the Youth Performing Arts School at duPont Manual High School and performing with Actors Theatre of Louisville. As a teenager, Scherzinger was the first runner-up at the 1996 Kentucky State Fair's Coca-Cola Talent Classic contest. Scherzinger majored in acting and musical theatre at Wright State University, where she played Velma Kelly in Chicago and Julie La Verne in Show Boat but put her studies on hold in 1999 to sing backing vocals for the rock band Days of the New.

In 2001, Scherzinger competed in the premiere season of The WB's television show Popstars, on which she earned a spot in the all-girl pop group Eden's Crush. She became one of the main vocalists for the group. Their 2001 US single "Get Over Yourself (Goodbye)" peaked at number one in sales and hit the top ten on Billboard Hot 100. They toured in support of both*NSync and Jessica Simpson. Later however, their record company, London-Sire Records, folded and the group eventually disbanded. In November 2007, Scherzinger spoke of her time in Eden's Crush:

It was hell. [...] I was in a band with five other girls and every day was torture for me. We were on TV all the time and the atmosphere was awful. [...] Every day I was in that band I cried my eyes out. The band was meant to be fun and frivolous but the reality was that it was miserable. [...] I was too sensitive back then, but I got toughened up. I couldn't have gone into the Dolls without my experience in Crush.

After the disbanding of Eden's Crush, Scherzinger made a few promotional solo appearances under the stage name of Nicole Kea, including covering "Breakfast in Bed" for the soundtrack to 50 First Dates in 2003. Scherzinger later worked with Yoshiki of Japanese rock band X Japan on his Violet UK project. She sang the English version of "I'll Be Your Love" live with the Tokyo Symphonic Orchestra. The track also appeared on the 2003 Various Artists album Exposition of Global Harmony.

In May 2003, Scherzinger joined the Pussycat Dolls burlesque troupe, who were being re-cast as recording artists. She had first seen them performing on The Late Show with David Letterman in November 2002, where Carmen Electra sang "Big Spender" from the Bob Fosse musical Sweet Charity. In 2006, Scherzinger said "It caught my eye because I’d played Velma Kelly in [Fosse's] Chicago in college." In one interview she spoke of her role with the Pussycat dolls stating that it was a "challenge fronting the group" but that "every girl has something different to bring and add to the success".

On September 13, 2005, they released their debut album, PCD, which debuted at number five on the Billboard 200. Their first single, "Don't Cha" was a success, reaching number one in multiple countries including United Kingdom, Australia and Canada and scored a maximum of number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was originally sung by Tori Alamaze and featured rapper Busta Rhymes. The ballad "Stickwitu" was another top five in the United States, and was their second number one in the United Kingdom. It was later nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Performance By a Duo or Group. "Beep", featuring will.i.am, was less successful but did reach number one in Belgium and New Zealand. "Buttons" (with rapper Snoop Dogg) scored number three on the UK Singles Chart and in the United States. Their next single, "I Don't Need a Man" was not as successful, although it scored the top 10 in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and United Kingdom. The group's sixth single from the album was "Wait a Minute" featuring Timbaland, becoming the groups top 40 success in the United States. The group was selected to perform for the introduction for ABC's coverage of the NBA. The Pussycat Dolls first opened for Black Eyed Peas Honda Civic Tour in North America. At the beginning of 2007 they toured in North America as a support act for Christina Aguilera's Back to Basics Tour, along with Danity Kane and NLT. In November 2006, the Pussycat Dolls embarked their PCD World Tour with Rihanna as the opening act in the UK leg. The Pussycat Dolls performed at the Manchester Evening News Arena in a concert that was recorded and later streamed via MSN Music.

The success of PCD brought Scherzinger into the media spotlight and she went on to record a series of duets/guest vocals with a wide array of male vocalists. In 2005, she appeared on recordings by Shaggy, Vittorio Grigolo and Will Smith. In 2006 she sang co-lead vocals with Avant on his single "Lie About Us" , and Diddy's hit "Come to Me" (which she also co-wrote). Other appearances are listed in discography. In the biography section of her official website she says that everyone recognises her from the Pussycat Dolls's debut single "Dont Cha" which although amazing doesn't fulfill her musical desires. When asked what she intended to achieve with her solo career she commented "Some people only have their glasses half full, but there was never a limit to mine." The purpose of the album was to appeal to younger audiences, show them "the heart of Nicole" and show that she is "not always strong and fearless".