Ella Henderson sees Simon Cowell as her "cool uncle".

The 18-year-old singer, who was a finalist on the ninth series of 'The X Factor' in 2012, says that since signing with the music mogul, she has seen more of him than her own parents.

Former 'X Factor' contestant Ella Henderson says she sees Simon Cowell as her "cool uncle".

The 'Ghost' hitmaker explained: "I think of him as my cool uncle. When I see him he will always come and sit and have a chat, he is so normal, so down to earth, he will just sit there with a bottle of Becks in his hand.

"It's strange because he is the guy on the telly you're petrified of but he is lovely. He has been so amazing and supportive through this process. He is just as excited as me about my album coming out and sharing it with the world."

Ella also revealed Simon, 55, has been offering her plenty of sound advice, telling the Sunday Mirror newspaper: "The day I signed my deal Simon said to me that so many young people come to the industry and forget to enjoy it. He said he wants me to enjoy it, you don't know how long it will last, you don't know the future, but he said he could tell I wanted it.

"He cares, Simon always asks me if I'm happy, that's his first question, he asks if he can do anything, anything I need. I guess if he asked the wrong person, they could ask for everything but I'm so happy.

"It's nice to know he genuinely cares. He will only go forward with something if he believes in it."

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