Nicole Scherzinger Joins U.K. 'X Factor'

Nicole Scherzinger at the Men In Black 3 Germany premiere in Berlin

Former Pussycat Dolls singer Nicole Scherzinger has announced that she will become a judge on the British version of The X Factor, replacing Destiny's Child singer Kelly Rowland. "I’m so excited to join the U.K. X Factor family," Scherzinger wrote in a tweet. "It's where I got my start, so it feels great to come full circle. I can’t wait to see what talent the U.K. has to offer and to help inspire and bring out the best in these artists."

Scherzinger is not new to the X Factor franchise. The singer was one of the judges on the first season of the United States version of the show last year, but was dropped along with Paula Adbul in favor of Britney Spears and Demi Lovato.

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'X Factor' Dumps Paula Abdul, Nicole Scherzinger

Steve Jones, L.A. Reid, Nicole Scherzinger and Paula AbdulNoel Vasquez/Getty Images for Extra

Paula Abdul, Nicole Scherzinger and Steve Jones have all been axed from the American version of Simon Cowell's hit singing competition The X Factor. The decision to fire two judges and the show's host was made at a meeting involving Cowell and his creative team in the United Kingdom, in which the group went over what they believe went right and wrong with the show's first season in the United States.

According to reports from a source close to the show, Abdul's role was deemed "irrelevant to the mix," particularly as the contestants she mentored were all picked off early in the competition. There was no explanation for why Scherzinger and Jones were dismissed, though the source noted that Cowell wanted to bring in bigger names for the second season. As it stands, L.A. Reid, the fourth judge on Cowell's panel, appears to be staying with the program.

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No Doubt, Nicole Scherzinger Twitter Accounts Hacked

No Doubt and Nicole Scherzinger are among the musicians hacked by Ron Paul Supporters.Mark Davis/Justin Sullivan/John Sciulli/Getty Images for MOCA

This morning, Ron Paul received some very public support from No Doubt, Nicole Scherzinger and Rise Against – but not by their own volition, as the musicians’ Twitter accounts were hacked by Paul supporters.

This morning, tweets appeared on the pages of the three recording artists endorsing the libertarian politician; they were all removed within a few hours, but Billboard has a screen grab of the tweet that appeared on the page of punk rockers Rise Against: “We endorse Ron Paul this 2012 too. We love you Ron! #ronpaulrevolution” with a link to donate to Paul’s campaign. The staunchly progressive band later posted: "As you would all assume, We DO NOT support Ron Paul."

No Doubt’s impostor took things a step further with two tweets. First came: “Today We Officially Endorse Ron Paul 2012 Donate to him here #ronpaulrevolution” with a link to donate, followed by: "If you actually read what Ron Paul is saying, you will discover that for the first time in your life a politician is not lying to you." The band later posted that they had no political endorsements at the present time.

As Billboard notes, all three of the hacked artists are currently signed to Interscope Records, providing a possible clue as to the identity of the hacker. As it is, Ron Paul has recently received favorable – and legitimate – Twitter attention from Kelly Clarkson and Michelle Branch.

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