Background
In December 2006, Lewis won the third series of British reality singing contest, The X Factor, her prize being a £1 million recording contract with Sony BMG, for which Simon Cowell is an A&R executive. Cowell also mentored Lewis on the show. During the live final, Lewis duetted with Gary Barlow of band Take That, who told Cowell, "This girl is probably fifty times better than any other contestant you have ever had, so you have a big responsibility to make the right record with her." Cowell admitted that Barlow's words resonated with him, and thus the decision was made to not rush her debut album, as he wanted an "incredible record" of original material, which he believed could not be done in less than a year. Lewis also wanted a high quality album that she could feel proud of. Cowell told Lewis that he did not care if the album took three years to make, he wanted to get it right.
On 25 April 2007, a press release was sent out revealing that Simon Cowell and Clive Davis, chairman and CEO of J Records, would work together in a first-of-its-kind partnership on both the song and producer selection for the album. Lewis performed a showcase for several American music executives at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Lewis named the album Spirit because "it is my heart and soul and the voice within that says everything is possible." The album originally had a September 2007 deadline, but was delayed due to Lewis suffering from tonsillitis and waiting for producers to become available.
Read more about this topic: Spirit (Leona Lewis Album)
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