Kelly Rowland and Paulina Rubio have joined The X Factor, replacing the outgoing Britney Spears and L.A. Reid on the Fox reality show’s judges’ panel. The two will round out the panel with series creator Simon Cowell and returning judge Demi Lovato, according to Reuters. Rowland, now a solo artist, is no X Factor novice – she served as a judge on the British version’s eighth season in 2011.
The X Factor has been unsteady since its 2011 U.S. premiere: viewership fell from an average 12.5 million per episode that year to 9.7 million per episode. Cowell has swapped out judges each season, flipping Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger for Spears and Lovato in Season Two. The U.K. X Factor, however, has found success with breakthrough artists including Leona Lewis and One Direction since launching in 2004.
The X Factor kicks off auditions today in Charleston, South Carolina, with tryouts running through July. Its third season begins this fall on Fox.