Janet Jackson May Join Season 2 of ‘X Factor’
Whitney Houston was being considered as a new judge for ‘X Factor,’ but after her unexpected death, Janet Jackson is reportedly in preliminary talks to join the hit FOX show.
In an interview with Anderson Cooper on Thursday, the talk show host asked the iconic pop star about whether she’s currently involved in the series. At first, the 45-year-old singer said no, but acted coy about it later. “Oh my God,” she said with a laugh. “No, I’m not a judge on ‘The X Factor.’”
“You’re not currently a judge on The X Factor,” Cooper replied. “No, I am not,” Jackson said. “But that’s all I really think I should say.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Simon Cowell is having meetings with various judge candidates this week. A source tells THR that Jackson is not the only contender on the list — Pink and Katy Perry are also being considered as possible replacements for former judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger.
“She’d be fun, because she is … hot … in a good way,” Cowell recently said of the newly single ‘Teenage Dream’ singer. “And she is feisty.”
On Thursday (Feb. 16), Fox announced that auditions for Season 2 of ‘X Factor’ will begin online March 1. Open-call auditions will kick off on March 14 in Kansas City.