Alexander Burke says people often think she’s a bitch

Alexandra Burke has claimed that people assume she’s a “bitch” before they get to know her.

The X Factor winner told The Observer that interviewers often tell her they didn’t realise she was so “bubbly”.

“I remember I had a photoshoot last year and the photographer told me, ‘Yeah, I asked a few people and they told me you were rude. They told me you were a diva’. It made me cry. It made me upset because I know who I am, and I was like, ‘What am I not showing in my interviews? What am I not showing in my music?’,” Burke said.

“I’m executive producer of the new album, so what I say goes. Of course I take advice from management, but I’m in a position where I can say a track’s definitely not on the album because it doesn’t speak about who I am. All I care about is making sure no one ever says again, ‘You’re such a diva’.”

Burke has previously confessed that her mother, former Soul II Soul singer Melissa Bell, has struggled to cope with her daughter’s success, leading to them clashing. Her half-brother was alsoaccused of working illegally in Britain as a cleaner.

“Honey, my whole life is like EastEnders. The Burke family – if we had one of those reality shows, people would be shocked. We’re crazy,” she said.

Speaking of her recent return to The X Factor as a judge, she added: “It’s catch-22. If I went onThe X Factor and didn’t criticise the acts, I would’ve got slated for that; and if I go on there too nice, people would’ve said, ‘She’s not got a bloody opinion’.

“I’ve got a lot of catchphrases. ‘Okay dot com’. I’ll go ‘dot com’ after everything. I’ll go ‘dot com’, ‘forward slash’, it’s just me, I’m a nutcase.”

Burke’s new single ‘Elephant’ is released today (March 11).