Tulisa Contostavlos has revealed the unlikely origin of the name of her band, N-Dubz.
The 36-year-old shot to fame with the band, which she joined at the age of 11, later going on to a solo career and a stint as a judge on the X Factor.
As the contestants sat around the campfire on Monday night’s episode (18 November), Strictly’s Oti Mabuse asked Contostavlos about her time in the band.
The singer explained that her cousin Dappy had hoped to be a solo star but that his father, their Uncle B, advised that a group including a girl would be better. He also suggested including Fazer, Dappy’s best friend at the time.
She explained: “My uncle offered me 20 quid and then I bartered him up to 50.”
Mabuse then asked what N-Dubz stands for, and the singer revealed that the name comes after their home area of North West London, NW.
Mabuse, who also has an association with the area, joked “I’m N-Dubz!”
Speaking about her time in the run up to their success, Constostavlos admitted that she had never had any doubts about the success the band would achieve until she reached the age of 17.
However, the moment she began having doubts after years of working away in the studio, the group broke through to success.
“At the moment we made it, I was at the sort of ‘give up’ stage,” she explained.
Later in the Bush Telegraph, she said: “It just goes to show in all situations, hang on in there guys.”
“I’m a big softie and I’m an emotional person,” she explained ahead of her entry into the jungle. “I will probably struggle in the first few days as doing something like this is a big deal for me. I haven’t been thrust this much into the spotlight in a while and I have avoided it out of irrational fear. I will probably be the most emotional when I first go in. It will take me a while to settle in, but I know I will get past that.”
Describing herself as the “mummy of N-Dubz”, the singer added that she hopes to be able to show fans her “true authentic self” and to “connect with people”.
