The Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger Was ‘Afraid’ to Challenge Britney Spears This Way on Tour
The Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger and Britney Spears are both famous dancers. However, Scherzinger was “afraid” of taking on Spears in a dance competition. Here’s what she had to say — and how she responded to the press frenzy surrounding her comment.
The Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger would ‘stand and watch’ if Britney Spears did this
During the mid-2000s, The Pussycat Dolls and Britney Spears occupied similar show business territory. They were both highly risque acts who drew influence from dance-pop, R&B, and rap music. The Pussycat Dolls even served as the opening act for The Circus Starring Britney Spears, a famous tour promoting Spears’ album Circus.
During an interview with MTV News’ Jocelyn Vena, Scherzinger said many of Spears’ fans thought a tour with both acts was a dream come true. She felt the tour was extremely good for her girl group. In addition, she applauded it for actually being like a circus.
The Pussycat Dolls’ presence on the tour garnered extra press attention when Vena asked Scherzinger if she’d be interested in a dance-off with Spears. “I would be afraid,” Scherzinger. “She can throw down. She’s got some moves. If we had a dance-off, maybe it would be more of a collaboration dance or maybe one of the other girls can do it; I’ll just stand and watch.”
The Pussycat Dolls’ Nicole Scherzinger recounts the Britney Spears anecdote differently
Subsequently, Allison Kuge of PR asked Scherzinger about this exchange. “I was doing an interview the other day and they were like, ‘Would you challenge Britney Spears to a dance-off?’” she recalled. “And I was like, ‘No! I’m not going to challenge Britney Spears to a dance-off!’ And then I read everywhere saying I’m afraid to challenge Britney Spears to a dance-off. I’m a cool chick, man.” Notably, when Scherzinger recounted the anecdote, she didn’t mention saying she was afraid of a dance-off with Spears, just that she was not going to challenge Spears to a dance-off.
Did Nicole Scherzinger and the other Pussycat Dolls see Britney Spears on the tour?
Later in the same interview, Scherzinger admitted she hadn’t spoken to Spears or even seen her on the tour. “It’s busy and these stadiums and venues are huge, so you’re in two different sides of the arena,” Scherzinger revealed. “Then you go and you perform, and then you head off to the next city. I think the girls have seen her a couple times, but I’m always in and out. We’re both so busy.” The disconnect between the two performers is especially notable considering some people were interested in them dancing together. Even though Scherzinger didn’t challenge Spears to a dance-off, she still had a lot of respect for her as a dancer.
