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Pop singer Britney Spears has made her debut as a judge for Simon Cowell’s singing competition, “The X Factor”. If you’re wondering how she did, well, don’t expect any meltdowns just yet. After judging the competition for two days, she has turned out to be a popular judge on the show.

She made her debut on Thursday and Friday in Austin, Texas and we’ve heard reports that she is already a hit in her new job. Also of note is the fact that she’s not afraid to go against the grain and disagree with Simon, L.A. Reid or Demi Lovato. Britney told one contestant, “I feel like your song was just in the wrong key”, adding that a different song would’ve been “more interesting.”

She commented to another contestant, “Your voice is really sweet, but I feel like you need a little more training.”

Britney is reportedly making $15 million for her role as judge on the singing show. It was said that Britney walked off of the set after a contestant butchered one of her songs, but rumor has it that the reports weren’t true.

As you can see from the above photo, Britney wore a bright pink dress both days in order to maintain continuity on the show. Will you watch the second season of “The X Factor”? We’ll be covering it as the show airs and along the way if we’ve got any interesting tidbits for you.

After much fuss over who would take the open seats at the judges’ table on the second season of “The X Factor”, Britney Spears has just tweeted the above photo! It appears that the rumors of the pop singer joining the show were all true. Along with Britney, you can see Antonio “L.A.” Reid, Simon Cowell and Demi Lovato!

Are you surprised that they’re all on board for the second season of the show? Do you think Britney and Demi are good additions in order to bring in the younger demographic that Simon is looking for? We’re glad to see Britney and Demi! We think they will be great mentors to the talent that the show will bring in the upcoming season. What do you think?

Auditions for the second season of The X Factor USA are set to open on March 1st with open call auditions starting in Kansas City on March 14th. So what’s going to change for the show since season one crowned Melanie Amaro its winner?

The show’s executive Simon Cowell has said that things will be different this year. In a new interview, he said that it doesn’t matter if his hopefuls already have management deals — they can still audition!

He said, “We wanted to change a few things this year, so starting with the auditions, we’ve torn up the rulebook again. Even if you have management you can still enter, and we are making it easier by extending the online auditions and taking the MyStudio booths to even more cities. You can enter as many times as you want and come to any of the cities, too. We’re hear to discover stars from all music styles including groups. I really believe a group can win this show!”

L.A. Reid said, “In the music industry, when you’re looking for new talent you can discover it anywhere. The X Factor is opening this up to go further than anyone has before, and that’s what it takes, so I can’t wait to see what amazing talent we might find. I urge people to go out and audition, this is the real deal.”

Are you going to audition for the second season of The X Factor USA?

In the mass firings surrounding The X Factor USA, one person besides Simon Cowell has retained his judging job — L.A. Reid! Last month, it was announced that Simon had given walking papers to host Steve Jones and judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger.

Now, L.A. has been confirmed to return for his judging duties on the second season of the show. His salary is yet to be confirmed, but Fox has agreed to having him return.

L.A. did sign Astro to his record label, while Paula and Nicole failed to net the show any real stars…save for maybe Josh Krajcik. Neither Simon nor Fox have made a statement on L.A.’s return to the show, but Simon did thank Steve, Paula and Nicole for their season one duties.

He said in a statement, “I want to say a massive thank you to Paula, Nicole and Steve for being part of The X Factor last year. I’m sure all three are going to have massive success in what they do next, but now is the time to thank them all for everything they did last year.”

Who are you most saddened to see leave the show? We were mostly bummed out to hear that Paula got the axe, primarily because she wasn’t really given that much of a chance on season one with the groups category. What do you think?

On last week’s elimination episode of The X Factor, it got down to Astro and Stacy Francis in the bottom two. Astro acted indignant in the final showdown, even asking his mentor, L.A. Reid, if he should sing at all, to stay in the competition.

This move didn’t sit well with Simon Cowell, who made it clear that he almost changed his mind in choosing to send Stacy home.

Since, we’ve learned that there is going to be a double elimination next week — so will Astro change his tune?

Apparently so, because Simon tweeted this message to let Astro’s fans know that things are much different now. He tweeted, “Met with Astro and his father today and @LA_Reid. Everything is much calmer now and the good news is he’s back on the show next week.”

Was it a wise decision for them to keep Astro in the competition over Stacy? What do you think? Sound off in the comments and let us know! Will Astro be singing his last song on the show when it comes time for America to vote?

In case you’ve missed our official recap of the show last night, then we’ve got the official list of the top 32 contestants on The X Factor and the judges who are mentoring each group!

THE GIRLS – MENTORED BY SIMON COWELL

Caitlin Koch
Tora Woloshin
Simone Battle
Drew Ryniewicz
Rachel Crow
Jazzlyn Little
Melanie Amaro
Tiah Tolliver

THE BOYS – MENTORED BY ANTONIO “L.A.” REID

Brennin Hunt
Brian Bradley
Skyelor Anderson
Nick Voss
Tim Cifers
Phillip Lomax
Marcus Canty
Chris Rene

GROUPS – MENTORED BY PAULA ABDUL

Stereo Hogzz
2Squared
4 Shore
The Brewer Boys
Illusion Confusion
The Anser

OVER 30s – MENTORED BY NICOLE SCHERZINGER

Elaine Gibbs
Tiger Budbill
Leroy Bell
James Kenney
Josh Krajcik
Krista Collins
Dexter Haygood
Stacey Francis

For the next stage of the competition, each of the groups will be going to their mentor’s homes to rehearse and receive guidance on everything they will need to score that $5 million recording contract.

Who are you rooting for in the competition? Who was your favorite contestant? Sound off in the comments below and let us know what you think!

Tonight’s episode of The X Factor brings the auditions to Chicago, Illinois. In case you’ve missed episode one and/or two, you can read our official recaps at these links (Episode 1, Episode 2).

Brock and Mackenna are up first, singing Colder Weather by the Zac Brown Band. They are really talented, considering it’s country music and we’re not fans. The judges all said yes.

Tim Quinn sang afterward and was off the mark. Robin Royal was up next, and she’s awful. Charlesia Heard is up next and she was trying to audition for a judging position. Singing next is Skylore Anderson, singing I Must Be Doing Something Right by Billy Currington. The judges enjoyed his performance, even though the track cut off in the middle of his singing. All of the judges said yes.

Auditioning next is J. Mark Inman singing Creep by Radiohead. He’s awkward and weird in his movements. He got through to the next round, and Simon didn’t get the chance to vote. Arin Ray sang next and got through. Afterward, Josh Krajcik is up next singing At Last by Etta James. He sounds like Michael Bolton. Standing ovation from the crowd and the judges are loving his soulful performance. He got through. (continue reading…)

Last night, the official series premiere for The X Factor USA aired on Fox, from 8-10pm EST. The judges were going through the audition rounds and found some pretty awesome talent. In case you’ve missed the premiere episode, check out our official recap here.

The auditions hit Miami for tonight’s show and we are following the action with you, live!

The show kicked off with Ashley Sansone, singing Piece Of My Heart by Janis Joplin. She sucks! Simon said that he couldn’t understand a word she sang. L.A. said no, Paula also said no, in addition to Simon. (continue reading…)

The X Factor made its series premiere in the United States today and we’re covering the events live!

The show will award a $5 million recording contract with Sony. Hosting the show is Steve Jones and the judges are Simon Cowell, L.A. Reid, Cheryl Cole and Paula Abdul. Where’s Nicole Scherzinger?!?

Rachel Crow is up first to the auditions. She’s 13-years-old and really wants to be a singer and she’s nervous! She’s singing Mercy by Duffy. She sounds okay, but a tad flat. The crowd loves her. Paula loves her performance and said she delivered the goods. Cheryl said she had her before she sang. L.A. Reid said she’s feisty, soulful and she has it all. Simon said she’s the reason why they lowered the age limit for the show. All of the judges gave her a “yes”.

Up next is Terrell Carter and he sounds okay, but not wonderful. Four yes’es from the judges! Ellona Santiago sang her heart out and got four positive responses from the judges. John Lindahl sang Forget You be Cee Lo Green and he wasn’t too bad. Four positive responses! (continue reading…)