Former X Factor winner Leon Jackson has admitted that he found out he had been dropped by his record label when the story was printed in a newspaper this week.

Leon had a one album deal with Sony and obviously hoped he would continue to make more with the company. However an insider leaked the news that he had been dropped to The Sun earlier this week.

Speaking to the Daily Record Jackson said: “The label never told me I had been dropped. I never heard it directly from anyone.

“Word filtered through the management about the likelihood of it happening but I was never told a date. No one at the label ever told me. The first time I knew was yesterday in the paper.”

However Leon seems to have taken the news better than previous winners who faced the same news (read Steve Brookstein) and has been quite gracious about the decision.

“I’m happy and not at all bitter. I think, in fact, this could be a blessing in disguise,” he said. “It’s evident that I wasn’t Simon Cowell’s favourite choice to win X Factor.”

Leon admits that he faced an uphill struggle to establish himself as an artist and failed to get the backing and promotion from his label which Leona lewis recived the year before.

“Leona was given a real push and even went to the States for massive promotion. I had a few TV adverts pushing the album,” he admitted.

“My last major promotion was in 2008 for Children In Need. There were very few gigs to promote the record.”