Leona Lewis

Leona Louise Lewis (born April 3, 1985) is an English singer-songwriter and actress who first gained fame when she won the third series of the UK verison of the X Factor where she was mentored by Simon Cowell. She has gone on to become one of the biggest selling acts to come from the X Factor with over 20 million records sold.

The X Factor (UK version)
Born in the London Bourgh of Islington, Lewis auditioned for the show after struggling to get her career off the ground. She impressed Simon Cowell and his fellow judges, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh, with her rendition of "Somewhere Over The Rainbow" by the legandary Judy Garland.

With Simon Cowell as her mentor, Lewis wowed the public with her amazingly beautiful voice, taking on such songs as "Summertime" from the opera Porgy and Bess, "Sorry Seems to Be The Hardest Word" by Elton John, and "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by SImon and Garfunkel.

Lewis won the show on December 16, 2006.

Career
Lewis released her winner's single, a cover of the Kelly Clarkson hit "A Moment Like This", on December 20, 2006. It spent 4 weeks at number 1 on the UK SIngles Chart. She released her debut album, Spirit, on November 9, 2007. It spawned the mega hit "Bleeding Love" and earned Lewis 3 Grammy nominations. She has gone on to release 3 more albums and one EP.

Lewis will be making her acting debut in the 2014 film Walking on Sunshine.

Leaving Sony
On June 3, 2014, Lewis annonced that she had left Syco Music and Sony Music Entertainment to sign a deal with Island Records, which is owned by the Unversial Music Group.

Relationship with Simon Cowell
Lewis has maintained a good relationship with her X Factor mentor Simon Cowell. He has praised her many times on Twitter, and she has performed on both American Idol and the American verison of the X Factor, where she got to sing with one of his season 3 acts Alex & Sierra, whom she said she enjoyed singing with. Cowell even tweeted his appreciation to her after she had left Syco Music and went to Island Records in 2014.

Discography
Albums:


 * Spirit (2007)


 * Echo (2009)


 * Glassheart (2012)


 * Christmas with Love (2013)

EPs:


 * Hurt: The EP (2011)