Tulisa Contostavlos has defended herself as a role model to young girls. The X Factor judge and N-Dubz star told Company magazine she is honest about who she is and she thinks that makes it easier for her fans to relate to her. Tulisa said: "People forget the girls that look up to me come from the same background. I'm their role model because I'm the only celebrity that doesn't lie about the fact she swears, gets into arguments, or was naughty when she was younger... just because I swear occasionally doesn't make me a bad person. It makes me human." The 23-year-old singer revealed she has had received a lot of criticism for her appearance and attitude, but she refuses to let it get her down. She said: "I've been put down a lot in my life and that can either make you depressed, upset and introverted or you don't care any more. I've had the worst things said to me - whore, chav... My problem is I'll defend myself and say something naughty back on Twitter." And Tulisa insists she is not scared of X Factor boss Simon Cowell. She said: "He doesn't scare me at all! I can see why people are scared of him because he's so powerful, but we just banter. He was winding us up trying to start arguments between me and Kelly and I said: 'You cheeky one, you, stop chatting rubbish!'." The full interview appears in the October issue of Company magazine, on sale September 10.
