‘X Factor’ Winner Melanie Amaro Reveals How She Adjusted to Moving to U.S. From Virgin Islands

When we first met 'X Factor' winner Melanie Amaro, she seemed like a sweet Florida girl with a room-filler for a voice trying to forge a career in entertainment. One night, post-performance, Amaro chose to reveal her accent, something she had concealed until that point. Turns out, Mel is originally from the Virgin Islands, and her prominent accent was something that she was picked on for when young.

In a chat with AOL Music, the $5 million gal revealed how she handles people from her past who teased her for how she spoke, as well as how she adjusted when she immigrated here. She also dished on what she learned while working under the tutelage of Simon Cowell.

When those who weren't so nice to Amaro resurface now that she's a big star, the singer shows she's a winner through and through. "I just kill them with kindness," she admitted. "I say, 'Thanks for supporting' and treat them like a fan. You can't try and push your way into my future now, if you haven't been there for me in the past. I don't think that's right."

In addition to dealing with people's reactions to her accent, Amaro revealed that fast food was a problem for her when she arrived on U.S. soil. "I gained like, 15 pounds," she admitted. "I discovered McDonald's and the rest is history!"

The school system was also foreign to her, as she revealed. "Having different periods and different classrooms and teachers for each subject, that was weird. It used to be one teacher and she teaches you everything in one classroom, so I had to adjust to that."

Amaro, who was on Cowell's team of girls said that she learns he drinks tons of ginger tea, which she says tastes like "hot wings juice" and that he loves rock 'n' roll.

He also knows how to pick 'em, as he initially eliminated Amaro in the home rounds. Realizing his mistake and with egg on his face, went to her Florida home to woo her back to the live rounds.