Did Simon Cowell Call Lady Gaga 'The Most Boring Singer in the World'?

For a man who makes his living talking about success and attempting to mold young talent into pop icons, Simon Cowell apparently has a pretty dim view of some of pop's biggest success stories.

"If you only ever heard Lady GaGa, she’s the most boring singer in the world," Cowell reportedly told UK pub The Mirror.

He went on to say: "You’ve got to see her – you need TV. Same with Beyoncé. Or Katy Perry. We’re all about image. You have to have that X Factor.”

Cowell's point is taken - there's no question that Lady Gaga, Beyoncé and Katy Perry have all benefitted by the way they express themselves visually. But is Lady Gaga the "most boring singer in the world"? Seems a bit harsh (not to mention inaccurate).

For his part, Cowell is denying the quote. His rep told Radar Online: "This was completely misreported. It's the complete opposite, in fact. Simon is a massive fan of both [Gaga and Beyoncé] and he always refers to them as amongst the artists he most admires. He thinks they are two of the most interesting, talented and relevant artists today."

Cowell himself denied the report, saying "I think somebody like Lady Gaga defines exactly what we're looking for. She's both talented and interesting. She's worked it all out for herself. You never get the feeling somebody is controlling her."

So maybe it's a wildly inaccurate quote from a notorious UK tabloid, or maybe Simon is once again manufacturing a controversy in order to create publicity. Whatever happened to that Geo Godly guy anyway?