Cheryl Cole will “never” leave Britain to live in the US, according to her close friend Will.i.am.
The Black Eyed Peas star admits Cheryl still hasn’t fully recovered after her battle with malaria, despite bravely returning to work.
Will.i.am, 35, is helping the 27-yearold put her X Factor contestants through their paces at the judges’ house stage of the competition.
Cheryl has regularly spent time in the States and is considering spending more time there as her career goes from strength to strength.
But close friend Will.i.am insists she is a home girl who will never turn her back on the UK.
He added: “Despite the levels of success and fame she has reached, she is a real home girl, and from the conversations I have had Jwith her I never see her leaving the UK full-time.
“Yes she will be in LA more when the US X Factor starts and she might even buy a base there, but I don’t see anybody or anything that will make her decide the US is home.”
Cheryl is said to have signed a £1.5million deal to co-host the US version of the hit show next year.
Cheryl’s bid to get her fella into judges’ house rejected
X Factor bosses have pulled the plug on plans for Cheryl Cole’s boyfriend to become a mentor on the show.
Troubled Cheryl, who is divorcing footballer Ashley Cole, wanted her US backing dancer love Derek Hough to join her in the judges’ houses stage next week.
But executive producer Richard Holloway pulled rank and vetoed the plan – effectively blocking Hough, 24, from any involvement in the smash-hit series.
Instead, Black Eyed Peas singer Will.i.am will be parachuted in to join Girls Aloud singer Cheryl, 27, in Ascot, Berks, next week, when she will pick her three X Factor finalists.
A show source said: “Cheryl has barely spent a day apart from Derek and with his background in dance she thought he would be a great mentor.
“But when Richard Holloway got wind of the idea he stepped in and immediately said ‘No’. This is the biggest show on TV so he feels that likewise mentors should be the biggest names in the music industry, not the judge’s latest squeeze. It’s unprofessional to say the least.
“Cheryl may adore Derek but unfortunately that feeling isn’t shared among the X Factor bigwigs.
“She was persistent in wanting Derek by her side, but it was explained to her that he is a dancer not a singer, and that X Factor is about singing.” Derek is known in the US as a professional on Dancing With The Stars, the American version of Strictly Come Dancing, but here is simply Cheryl’s boyfriend.
Cheryl Cole is concerned after hearing that Black Eyed Peas star will.i.am has been targeted by thieves, a report has claimed.
Earlier this week, it was revealed that $10,000 (£6,688) worth of personal items had been stolen from the hip-hop artist’s Bentley after the vehicle was broken into. A laptop, mobile phone and jewellery are thought to be among the missing property.
According to the Daily Star, Cole is panicking over the news because she fears material from her next album could be in the hands of the robbers. will.i.am has been working with the X Factor judge as she puts the LP together.
Cole is also said to be worried that text messages she sent to the rapper could be on the missing phone.
A source said: “She is on tenterhooks waiting to find out whether anything of hers was taken.”
Cole toured with will.i.am and the rest of the Black Eyed Peas earlier this year.
It has been reported that Cheryl Cole has signed a record deal in the US under Black Eyed Peas star, Will.i.am’s label.
Cheryl and Will worked together on her debut album, 3 Words and have made no secret of the fact they’d like to continue working with one another.
Will told the Big Issue: “[Cheryl's] dope, I like collaborating with her. We’ve talked about working on her next album, plus we signed her to the label in America.
“We’re figuring out how we go about it in the States. It has to be something really incredible done in a different way.”
But if you’re hoping there is something more than friendship between the pair you’re going to be disappointed as Will addressed the rumours that he wants to sleep with the singer…
“I heard that, it’s so not true. Cheryl is a lovely girl. We’ve had the best time on tour, hanging out after the show and partying.”
Cheryl cuddles and dances with Will.i.am in Cannes
A smiling Cheryl Cole appears to be putting the troubles of the past year firmly behind her.
The singer let her hair down with friend Will.i.am last night at an after party following her live performance in Cannes, for which she was paid a fee of £250,000.
Despite previous denials of any romance between them, she could not hide her growing closeness to the Black Eyed Peas singer, a self-confessed admirer.
He had dashed back from the World Music Awards in Monaco to play a DJ set at the after party – and was rewarded with cuddles and a dance.
After changing out of her stunning fishtail Cavalli gown, Cheryl dressed down in an orange £2,205 Julien McDonald minidress, and spent the rest of the evening partying by the rapper’s side in the DJ booth.
The singer performed a two-hour set. And the couple danced, cuddled and posed together for photos.
There has been speculation about the pair’s growing friendship, fuelled by his comments that she was the ‘most beautiful woman in the world’.
