From Cheryl Cole to Tulisa: The ups and downs of talent show judges' music careers

With Nicole Scherzinger unleashing her new single 'Boomerang' in the UK this week, keen-eyed chart-watchers will be interested to see how well it fares following her hugely successful stint on The X Factor UK.

For some popstars, talent show judging gives their recording career a huge boost. For others... not so much. For every Cheryl Cole storming to No1, for example, there's a Kelly Rowland struggling to even infiltrate the Top 40.

THE HITS

Cheryl Cole (The X Factor)

Cheryl's already prolific career received an unimaginable boost when she signed up for The X Factor. Already a tabloid darling, she was soon labelled a National Sweetheart and, in her first year as a judge, Girls Aloud scored their first non-charity No1 single since their debut. When she inevitably then went solo, 'Fight For This Love' became the fastest-selling single of 2009, trumping even her own protegee Alexandra Burke's 'Bad Boys', and the lead single from Album No2, 'Promise This', also swanned to No1. Even when Cheryl's seemingly untouchable reputation began to slip slightly (Gamugate, Wagnergate, criticism for her vocal ability) she still remained one of the country's most famous people. Last year, 12 months after she was controversially dismissed from The X Factor USA, she still managed to score a huge-selling No1 in 'Call My Name'.

Maroon 5 (The Voice)

Adam Levine's turn on The Voice USA propelled his band Maroon 5 back to the level of popularity they first enjoyed upon their breakthrough in 2002. 'Moves Like Jagger' was utterly inescapable for what felt like a decade, and follow-ups 'Payphone' and 'One More Night' have also been hugely successful.

Jennifer Lopez (American Idol)

A return to pop had been in the pipeline for years when Jennifer Lopez finally signed up for American Idol, and yet nothing really came to fruition. Then, finally, in 2011, she released all-conquering Euro-like Pitbull collab 'On The! Floor', which went 3x Platinum in the US and gave her her third UK No1.

will.i.am (The Voice UK)

will.i.am's commercial performance went from strong to stronger last year when he joined The Voice UK. In fact, he's had a 100% strike-rate of No1s ever since: 'This Is Love' featuring Eva Simmons stormed to the top last summer, he reached the summit as a guest star on The Script's 'Hall Of Fame' in September, and his Britney Spears collab 'Scream & Shout' is the best-seller of 2013 so far. The only thing he needs now is critical acclaim.

Demi Lovato (The X Factor USA)

The success of Demi's stint on The X Factor USA in terms of her recording career are still to be seen, but the early signs are incredibly promising. Earlier this month the one-time Disney star unveiled her new single 'Heart Attack', which fired to No1 on the US iTunes store and flogged 215,000 copies in its first week - a new personal best for Lovato, and the second fastest-selling track in label Hollywood Records' history.

The Script (The Voice UK)

Many of their long-standing fans may have argued that The Script's third album #3 is by far their weakest yet, but the sales figures tell a different story following Danny O'Donoghue's turn as a mentor on The Voice UK. Its lead single 'Hall Of Fame' gave them their first UK No1, and follow-ups 'Six Degrees of Separation' and 'If You Could See Me Now' have been big radio hits.

THE MISSES

Christina Aguilera (The Voice)

Despite taking over the world with Maroon 5's 'Moves Like Jagger', the artist formerly known as Xtina struggled to convert her popularity on The Voice into record sales with her latest LP Lotus. Despite healthy reviews and a stormer of a lead single in 'Your Body', it became her first English-language studio album to miss the Top 3 on the Billboard charts, settling instead at No7. In the UK, it limped to No28.

Tulisa (The X Factor! )

It started so well! Tulisa's first solo single 'Young' was a massive No1 last Spring; its first-week sales hitting six figures and eclipsing the controversy over her leaked sex tape. Sadly, the momentum couldn't be maintained. Her second hit 'Live It Up' stalled outside the Top 10 and third attempt 'Sight Of You' at the wrong end of the Top 20. What's more, her debut album The Female Boss failed to stand out in the end-of-year Christmas rush and charted only at No35, despite promotion on The X Factor. Poor 'T'.

Kelly Rowland (The X Factor)

Her radio-friendly club single 'Down For Whatever' may have charted at No6, but that's about as good as Kelly Rowland's recording career got when she was a judge on The X Factor UK. Her album Here I Am stalled outside the Top 50 when it was first released in November 2012, managing to lift only as far as No43 following a performance on the show's semi-final. Next single 'Lay It On Me' made it as far as No69.

Alesha Dixon (Strictly Come Dancing)

Unfortunately a stint on the Strictly Come Dancing panel couldn't keep Alesha's recording career afloat when her second album The Entertainer limped to a disappointing No84 in November 2010. It's a real shame, as it was a very good collection - particularly its second single 'Radio', which was performed on the BBC dance competition but still only managed a peak of No46.