Britney Spears has revealed that she “absolutely hated” her time as a judge on The X Factor USA when she appeared on the show in 2012.
Singer Britney, 41, has signed up to star in the show’s second series alongside Demi Lovato, with the pair replacing season one judges Nicole Scherzinger and Paula Abdul.
But pop star Britney, who also sat on the jury along with Simon Cowell and L.A. Reed, said she wasn’t cut out for a job that involved being “skeptical for eight hours straight.”
She said she decided to take on the role of judge at the time to find professional direction.
In her memoir, The Woman in Me, released on Tuesday, October 24, the star explained: “Feeling like I needed more direction, I decided to go back to work. I tried to keep myself busy with productive work. I started appearing on more TV shows, including 2012 as a judge on The X Factor.
“I think a lot of people are really professional in television, like Christina Aguilera and Gwen Stefani. When the camera is pointed at them, they thrive. And that’s great.
“I used to be able to do this when I was younger, but again, when I’m afraid, I feel like I’m aging backwards.
“And so I got to the point where I was very, very nervous if I knew I had to be on air, and I didn’t like being nervous all day.
“Maybe I’m just not cut out for this anymore. Now I have accepted it and everything is fine.
“I can tell people who are trying to push me in this direction, no. I was forced to do things I didn’t want to do and humiliated. It’s none of my business at the moment.
“So if you have a cute cameo on a funny TV show where I come and go throughout the day, that’s one thing, but acting skeptical for eight hours straight based on TV? Oh no thanks. I absolutely hated it.”
It comes after The X Factor boss Simon Cowell begged Britney to work with him again, 10 years after they both sat on the judging panel for the US version of the show.
The 63-year-old music mogul publicly urged Britney to consider appearing on one of his shows now that she is free from her conservatorship, describing the “talented” star as having “great ideas about how to launch someone’s career.”
He told E! News from November: “We talked on the phone about X Factor for so long before we did it.
“There’s a side of Britney that a lot of people don’t know about. I mean, I talked to her on the phone for two or three hours every time.
“She was very smart, with great ideas about how to start someone’s career, which is very important if you’re going to be a judge on one of these shows. So I had a fantastic relationship with her.”
He added: “If you watch Britney and we do the show, please come back and do it with me.” That would be amazing. I adore her.
“She’s really interesting and so talented.”
Britney was released from the conservatorship in 2021, with her conservators previously having power over her financial and medical affairs, as well as career decisions and important personal matters, such as when she could see her teenage sons Sean, 18, and Jayden , 17 years.
At this time, performer Britney appeared on The X Factor, but now she can make her own decisions regarding her career.
It comes after Simon said there was a “decent chance” of The X Factor returning to the UK or US in 2024.
The talent show judge is considering bringing the series back to TV screens and is said to be more inclined to see the program brought back to the States, where Simon has a strong working relationship with NBC on America’s Got Talent.
Speaking about who the judges would be if he decides to revive The X Factor, he said: “Industry insiders like A and R people rather than artists because they have a better eye for talent and are less jealous of bright young acts.” .