As a teenager, devout Catholic Nicole, whose grandad is a preacher in Hawaii, would grip her parents’ hands and beg God to calm her crippling stage nerves.
In the Dolls she held pre-gig prayer sessions with the others. Even now, before each solo gig, she clasps her hands skywards and slips into a trance.
“As a teenager, Nicole would be gripped by fear and felt she couldn’t go on stage unless she connected to God,” the Mirror quoted scout Betsy Kronish, who saw Nicole win the Kentucky State Fair’s Coca-Cola Talent Classic contest at the age of 15, as saying.
“She’s a perfectionist. She came to us a shy, shy girl who wouldn’t talk to anyone, but who had a deep yearning to sing. She and her parents are deeply religious – they came to every one of her shows and the three of them would pray in unison before Nicole sang. Religion is a huge part of her family. She tells me she still prays before she goes onstage,” Kronish added.
