Lawson appeared in the female lead role in the West End production of Thriller – Live from 14 April 2009 to March 2010.
She has also provided backing vocals for many other artists, including Kelly Clarkson, Anita Baker and British soul singer Lemar.
[1][2] Lawson auditioned for the first series of The X Factor in 2004, but she was rejected by judge Simon Cowell after reaching the "bootcamp" rounds.
Lawson outlined in her 2008 autobiography life starts now, that during her second addition for the X factor, Cowell immediately remembered her from the previous year, stating that he had "made a mistake" in not putting her through to the live shows.
After performing "Stop" by Sam Brown at her audition, Lawson proceeded through to the bootcamp rounds with fellow singer, Sharon Osbourne emerging as her new mentor.
In the fifth week of the live shows, Lawson performed "Brown Sugar", receiving criticism from judges that it was unsuitable for her.
After the public vote, Lawson found herself in the bottom two for the first time with Irish girl group The Conway Sisters.
BBC Radio 2 "A-listed" the track (putting it on heavy rotation), and it achieved a position of number 20 in the UK Singles Chart.
Her self-titled debut album was recorded in Los Angeles where she worked with multi-Grammy winning songwriter Diane Warren, Steve Kipner, Lester Mendez and the Heavy Weights.
In Lawson's 2008 autobiography, Life Starts Now, she revealed that her then record company, Sony BMG, decided (after much delay) to part ways and not continue with the release of the single.
An interview with Lawson appeared in the June issue of Pride Magazine and a clip of the official video for "Breaking Me Down" was made available on her website.
It follows Lawson's journey from hopeful unknown, through the audition process and beyond to her appearance on a major national television show.
[8] On 11 April 2009, it was announced on Lawson's Myspace page that she would be performing the female lead role in the West End production of Thriller – Live at The Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, London.
Lawson has been signed to Wilhelmina in the US, one of the most prominent model and celebrity agencies in the fashion industry with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Miami.