L.A. Reid Not Returning for X FACTOR Season 3

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Epic Records mogul L.A. Reid will officially not return for a third season of THE X FACTOR, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed tonight.

Reid, who has held a position on the judges panel since the Fox series launched last year, reportedly wants to return to his first love of scouting for talent, and helping shape the careers of up and coming artists.

"I have the utmost respect for Simon Cowell, he is the very best and I have had the opportunity to learn so much from him," Reid said. "Working with him on X Factor has been a once-in-a-lifetime experience, I'm honored to have sat on the panel with such incredible talent."

Reid was the only judge from season one to be rehired for the second season. Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger were replaced with Britney Spears and Demi Lovato. No word yet on if Spears and Lovato will also return or not.

"Of course I will miss the show, in my opinion Simon attracts the best talent but I'm looking forward to getting back to my core business and the responsibility of running Epic Records," Reid said.

This season, Reid was in charge of acting as a mentor to the 25-and-over contestants. His last mentee, country singer Tate Stevens, is a frontrunner to win next week's finale.

THE X FACTOR was created by Syco Television and is produced by Syco Television and FremantleMedia North America. Rob Wade and Nigel Hall are executive producers for Syco Television. Trish Kinane, Richard Holloway and Andrew Llinares serve as executive producers for FremantleMedia North America. "Like" THE X FACTOR on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/TheXFactorUSA. Follow the series on Twitter @TheXFactorUSA and join the discussion at #xfactor.