Leona Lewis has had a tough old time since splitting with childhood sweetheart Lou Al-Chamaa.
Since I broke the story of their split at the end of June ,sources close to the star tell me that Leona's more than a little bit down in the dumps. So much so she's pulled the plug on any plans to tour Australia, Asia and Europe, opting to head straight into the studio to put her anguish into a new album.
My mole tells me: "Leona's heart just wasn't in the tour towards the end of the UK leg. She was upset, teary and heartbroken over her split with Lou.
She'd been with him for 10 years.
This was the love of her life.
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The last thing she wanted was to be on the road away from a support network of friends and family. She wasn't up for it emotionally."
But sources tell me another huge problem with Leona's plans for the next six months was Christina Aguilera scrapping her tour after it bombed with poor sales in the US. Our Leona was due to support Xtina in the US before completing the rest of the tour. My source adds: "Christina's tour flopping caused a major problem for Leona. It meant she would have a long time to wait before she could tour the rest of the world." But have no fear, fans of The X Factor winner - she has big plans for the next few months.
This week she went into the studio with super producer Dallas Austin to start work on tracks for a deluxe edition of Echo to be released with her tour UK DVD before Christmas. And from what my sources say, her break-up with Lou is fuelling some killer tracks. "She's full of ideas," adds my source. "She's got a new lease of life in songwriting. She's putting her heartbreak into her music."
Meanwhile Simon Cowell has laid down a deadline for her next album. I hear he wants her third studio album by next summer so she can sing live on US X Factor in the autumn - giving her a huge boost in the US. Hurrah!
