Simon Cowell

Britney Spears joined her new X Factor team at a party to celebrate the upcoming season in Central Park last night. Britney changed into a short purple Alexander Wang frock after wearing a white minidress for the official announcement of her involvement earlier in the day. Britney, Demi Lovato, Simon Cowell, and L.A. Reid will be judges on the reality competition, though the new host has yet to be confirmed. Britney's fiancé Jason Trawick joined her for the big NYC day, which they wrapped up with dinner at ABC Kitchen later in the evening. While Britney has her new role to look forward to, she also still has a wedding to plan since she and Jason became engaged late last year.

It's official: Britney Spears and Demi Lovato are your new X Factor judges. The ladies stepped out in NYC today at Fox's upfront presentation for the official announcement that Britney and Demi are joining the show. Rumors started swirling months ago about Britney's involvement and a reported $15 million contract, but no confirmations were made until today. Returning judge Simon Cowell took the stage together before bringing out the rest of his team, saying, "I'm thrilled to be able to confirm the return of L.A. Reid, the addition of Demi Lovato and the superstar Britney Spears."

Britney made a brief cameo in a sexy white minidress and posed for photos with Demi and the guys. Before leaving the stage, Britney chimed in about her judging role: "I am so excited about this . . . I'm ready to find the true star." The second season of X Factor returns this Fall, but will you tune in to see Britney and Demi?

Shirtless Simon Cowell showed off his tan and his muscles on the deck of a yacht near St. Barts yesterday. Simon's been vacationing in the Caribbean since the holidays, though his stay has extended longer than some of the island's other recent celebrity visitors. Rachel Zoe and her family returned to LA after their getaway last week, while Ryan Seacrest and Julianne Hough have also wrapped up their beach time. Simon will soon follow suit and get back to work on Britain's Got Talent following the end of a successful season on the American version of X Factor.

Simon Cowell put his six-pack on display yesterday while hanging out on a yacht, The Slipstream, docked off the coast of St. Barts. Celebs love the Caribbean island at this time of year, with Rachel Zoe, Ryan Seacrest, and Marc Jacobs spending their Winter holiday on its white sandy beaches. Simon's enjoying a short break from work after wrapping up the first season of his American X Factor. The music mogul has a few more weeks of downtime left on his schedule before returning to the UK to resume filming Britain's Got Talent.

Simon Cowell let his open life jacket fly free during a day of jet skiing in Barbados on Saturday. The X Factor mastermind and judge is known to spend his holidays relaxing in the world's most luxurious spots, and this time is no exception. Last Christmas Simon was shirtless in St. Barts and his tan will once again be perfect to kick off a new year. Simon's X Factor crowned its first stateside winner last week, and while the show will be coming back for a second season, there may be some shifts coming up. Host Steve Jones is rumored to not be returning, and apparently Nicole Scherzinger may also be leaving X Factor. Simon is here to stay, however, and for now he has some downtime after crowning 19-year-old Melanie Avaro victorious.

Simon Cowell arrived in style for last night's screening of his new TV show, The X Factor, stepping out of his custom-built black Rolls-Royce to greet screaming fans at LA's ArcLight theater. He was the last judge to arrive on the red carpet and promptly received a kiss from his good friend Paula Abdul. X Factor reunites former American Idol judges Simon and Paula and introduces new faces L.A. Reid and Nicole Scherzinger and super-hot host Steve Jones, who's well known in the UK as a presenter. We were on hand for last night's exclusive screening of the first two episodes, which begin Sept. 21, and were happy to see Paula and Simon's infamous chemistry back in full force. L.A. adds his producing and songwriting expertise to the judging panel, while Nicole has a fresh point of view due to her years of touring the globe as a solo artist and with The Pussycat Dolls. Following the screening, the judges answered questions from fans, and according to Simon, he's finally "met his match" in fellow judge L.A. Here's more:

• Simon on comparing the US to UK audiences: "They [the US] have an amazing musical knowledge . . . they were very tough on us at times when we didn't love somebody. I thought there were moments when we were going to get mauled when the audience disagreed with us. The American audience is tougher than the UK audience."
• Steve on hanging backstage with contestants: "[One contestant] said I wear too much makeup and I'm nothing but a stretched Ryan Seacrest. And I was like, [sarcasm] 'Well, best of luck with your audition.'"
• Paula on changing the lives of contestants: "It's an overwhelming feeling, it's a blessing to see and to feel what other people feel when they're getting that moment. It's awe inspiring. Don't take it for granted."
• On major arguments over contestants:
  Simon: "I'm going to let you in on a little secret: when certain girls came to audition, if they were too attractive they were known as DOA, in other words dead on arrival, and from that, Nicole was christened Sylvester, from Sylvester the Cat, and Paula became Tom, from Tom and Jerry. So we had to fight, me and L.A., to keep the attractive girls in the competition because Sylvester and Tom didn't want them in the competition and that's where, true story, most of the arguments came from. L.A., will you back me up on that?"
  L.A.: "True story."
• Simon on what the "X Factor" is: "When someone is brilliant it's a no-brainer. Where it got tricky, as I said before, when other factors came into play, and that's where you needed myself and L.A. Reid to be fair and balanced. I got things back on track, but that's pretty much the only time we argued."
• Simon on expanding the age range of contestants: "[Joking with Paula] This show is all about giving older women a second chance."