It's no secret that Sia and Maddie Ziegler have a relationship that embodies both friendship and mentorship. However, Sia also looks at herself as a mother figure to the "Dance Moms" alum, which is why she felt an innate urge to keep her safe early in her career.

"I mean, as soon as I met Maddie I felt this extreme desire to protect her, and I think that it was part of my own healing... I felt this extreme compulsion to protect her," Sia explained of the now 17-year-old while appearing on the "Zach Sang Show" on Wednesday.

"The irony is that I didn’t want to be famous and I threw this child into the spotlight," she continued. "[Maddie] would say to me, 'Don’t be silly, I was already famous and I wanted to be famous.' And I would say, 'And you know, it can stop at any time, right? Like, if you want it to stop, I can make it stop. You can just go back to being a normal person again.' But she said, 'No, I love performing. I love dancing, and I love acting so much.'"

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Sia's protectiveness over the multi-talented teen, who was 11 when they first met, led to her helping Maddie find projects to keep her busy.

"So I thought, how’s a good way I can keep her safe is just keep making projects for her, and therefore most of the time we’re working together – and you know I kept her off a plane that Harvey Weinstein tried to get her on," the 44-year-old singer-songwriter revealed.

She added, "I know that there’s been times where my insight has really made a difference, like kept her safe. Yeah, that was really disgusting… When he invited her, that’s when I called, I told [her mom] Melissa, I had to. I just said, 'Please don’t, do not do that, do not do that, do not do that.'"

"Even recently, she was offered a part in a film and I felt that the film wasn’t good enough for her, and so I called Melissa, and was like, 'Please don’t do this, like this isn’t good for her career. It’s not good for her long term credibility. This is not a good co-star to be in a movie with.' So I just try and help guide," Sia shared. "I can be a pain in the butt. I think her manager thinks I’m a real pain in the butt, I’m sure."

Sia admission comes on the heels of news that Weinstein and the women who accused him of sexual misconduct had come to an agreement as part of a class-action lawsuit -- an agreement worth almost $19M. New York Attorney General Leticia James made the announcement late Tuesday.

"We fought a long and grueling battle in the courtroom," Caitlin Dulany, one of the plaintiffs in the suit, said in a statement provided by James' office. "Harvey avoided accountability for decades, and it was a powerful moment for us to band together and demand justice. Knowing that we will help so many women who are long overdue for relief gives me hope that this settlement will continue to empower others to speak."

Maddie Ziegler, Sia
Maddie Ziegler and Sia attend The 57th Annual GRAMMY Awards at the STAPLES Center on Feb. 8, 2015, in Los Angeles. Getty Images/Larry Bussaca
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