Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger thanks God after winning Tony Award
Nicole Scherzinger, best known as the lead singer for the girl group The Pussycat Dolls, gave glory to God during her acceptance speech at the Tony Awards this week.
The former judge on "The X Factor" won the award for Lead Actress in a Musical for her role in "Sunset Boulevard" at the 78th Annual Tony Awards on Sunday.
"I just have to thank God for carrying me every step of the way," an emotional Scherzinger said at the beginning of her acceptance speech.
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"I give you all the glory," she added, speaking directly to God. She gave praise to her mother, who "had me at 18 and gave everything up for me." She also thanked her grandparents, who "instilled in me an unshakable faith."
"God bless you," she said at the conclusion of her speech.
Throughout her decades-long career, the pop singer has not hesitated to bring up her Christian faith.
In a 2013 interview with The Independent, Scherzinger touched upon her religious upbringing: "I come from the most religious family — my grandfather is a priest — and if they support me in all this, and they do, then I'm OK."
Scherzinger lamented in the interview that to succeed in the entertainment industry, "you really have to sell your soul to the devil," assuring that she hadn't and a factor that may explain why she hadn't "quite reached the top of my mountain" by winning a Tony, Grammy or Oscar award.
Scherzinger suggested that her career as a performer is "God's will" and described it as "a blessing" even amid the pressure that comes with working in the entertainment industry.
In a 2016 interview with The Daily Mail, Scherzinger discussed her role as a character who had an abortion in the ABC remake of "Dirty Dancing" and how she almost did not take it because of her pro-life beliefs.
"I was like a crazy thing because, my family, my Papa's a bishop and my family's really hardcore against abortion," she stated.
While Scherzinger said she almost rejected the role because she "didn't want to promote abortion," she decided to use her role as an opportunity to spread the pro-life message after her grandfather prayed and determined that it was "what she was meant to do."
Scherzinger said at the time, "We decided that maybe I could be a voice, that I could shed some light on the subject without being preachy," adding, "Hopefully they can learn from you know her ways and I can be a positive influence."
Touching upon a theme she would address in her acceptance speech at the Tony Awards nearly a decade later, Scherzinger expressed gratitude that her mother, pregnant with her at 17, "chose" life.
"Her parents were never going to let her have an abortion," she said.
"So I came out, so I just want to you know encourage everybody to keep your babies," Scherzinger stated as she expressed solidarity with the pro-life movement.
In a 2019 interview with The Guardian, Scherzinger said she attends church twice a week, either in person or online.
"I was very conservative. I had really strong religious beliefs. I just wanted to make my mother proud," Scherzinger recalled of her childhood.
Ryan Foley is a reporter for The Christian Post. He can be reached at: ryan.foley@christianpost.com
