TRUTH BE TOLD...Kelly Rowland STARTED as the most popular judge on last season of the X-Factor, but by the time the LIVE shows rolled around, public opinion completed shifted and she became very, very unpopular because the majority of people saw her personality as quite false. Her behaviour also became very annoying, what with all her ill-placed "Y'ALL!!"'s and "BOO"'s. It got tedious very quickly. And then there was the whole Misha Bully gate. Messy business.

I think Nicole WILL be more popular and well-liked than Kelly. I remember after her stint on UK X-Factor a couple seasons ago, a lot of people wanted her onboard as a permanant judge. She is also (arguably) a better singer than Rowland.