WITH V Festival taking place this weekend, the excitement is building among those lucky enough to get tickets.

But it seems it is not confined to those who will be watching in the crowd. Diana Vickers, best known from her time on the X Factor, is due to perform at this year’s Chelmsford festival and she just can’t contain her enthusiasm about returning to the Essex stage.

She says: “I can’t wait. It’s going to be great. I performed there about three years ago and it was a really good crowd. I can’t wait to get back.

“I think that hands down it’s always a really good gig to play. It’s really beautiful there too, its lovely. It’s really nice and got lots of green. I love a bit of green.

“I remember when I played there in Chelmsford it was just such a buzz and it’s not too big as well. There are just a few stages and key acts and it’s just really fun.

“It was one of the best gigs I’ve ever played. Everyone is just up for the festival, everyone just wants to get a bit drunk and go a bit mad. It’s all a bit of a rave really.”

The 21-year-old, who came fourth in the 2008 X Factor, first performed at the Hylands Park festival venue in 2010 and will be making an appearance this year at the Futures stage on Sunday.

Diana, who saw her debut single, Once, rocket to number one in 2010, appears to have beaten the X Factor “curse”, of being a one-hit wonder but admits that the road from reality show to success isn’t always straight forward.

“I think it’s a bit of a curse sometimes,” she said. “The X Factor is such a great platform. I think it all depends on what you do with it and what record label you go with after and if you want to have a voice or if you choose not to have a voice.

“For me it kind of worked out OK. There’s been ups and downs, but I think it’s just a really great platform and you’ve just got to embrace what you can from it.”

She plans to perform a set featuring hits from her first album, Songs From The Tainted Cherry Tree, which was written at the tender age of 17, but will also perform songs from her new “grown-up” album, Music to Make Boys Cry, out on September 15.

She says: “I just think I just grew up a lot and when I was writing this album, I was introduced to so many more different types of music.

“I made more friends, I got settled in London and just grew up so much.

“I thought the first album was kind of like a development in a way. I experimented with stuff , but this is the kind of album that I really wanted to make and I’ve done it, so it’s a really cool feeling.

“I really am proud it took a while to get there, but I finally got there and it does just feel great.”

But Diana admits that while she has high hopes for her “awesome” new album, she is apprehensive about how the festival crowd might react.

She said: “I am a bit nervous because obviously they don’t know my music and they might be a bit drunk. We’ll see how it goes down.

“It feels like a whole new thing.

“It feels like ‘wow, I’m starting it all again.’” “This time round it feels really scary but I think it does feel so much better as well.

“I appreciate it so much more and I know what I want more but it does really feel like going back to the beginning. “But it will be exciting and to see how people react to this sound now.

“I believe in the album so much and I believe it is such a really awesome album and I will say that to the bitter end, it just really deserves it and fingers crossed.

“It’s like my baby, but no matter how people respond to it, I just have to think if I’m proud of it that’s all that matters, really.”

But the singer is looking forward to seeing the rest of the artists performing in the festival just as much as getting on stage.

She says: “I just love Kings of Leon. They’re my favourite band. I’ve seen them a million times but I’m always really excited to see them.

“I’m looking forward to seeing everything, and Calvin Harris.

“I think that will be one big party, so I’m definitely going to be in that crowd.”

Diana’s new single, Cinderella, is available to download now