Britney Spears is close to finalizing a $15 million deal to serve as the new superstar judge on Simon Cowell's talent show The X Factor, according to online reports.

The "Toxic" hitmaker has been rumored to be in talks to take a seat alongside Cowell and producer Antonio "L.A." Reid on the panel for weeks and now insiders claim the big announcement is imminent.

Spears is said to be ready to sign on the dotted line after being offered a $15 million payday - after she reportedly turned down $10 million.

A source tells E! Online, "Both camps were back and forth on the money but now they have finally come to agreement on the fee.

"That was the big sticking point and now, thankfully, it's been sorted. All they need to do now is work out the smaller points. The fact the money is now set means that there is nothing stopping this from becoming a reality."

Fans had feared the pop star would be too fragile to handle the pressure of the publicity surrounding the show - but reports suggest her fiance, Jason Trawick, will be by her side as a producer.

A source adds, "Jason is expected to be there every day Britney is on set. He is her rock and will help guide her through the process. He is the person she trusts the most."

Spears will sit on the panel alongside Cowell and Antonio 'L.A.' Reid, as well as another female judge.

The two newcomers will replace Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger as judges.
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Davy Jones -- lead singer of The Monkees -- died after suffering a heart attack this morning ... TMZ has learned.

An official from the medical examiner's office for Martin County, Florida confirmed with TMZ they received a call from Martin Memorial Hospital informing them that Jones had passed away.

We're told Davy suffered the heart attack at a ranch near his Florida home, where he was visiting his horses. Davy began experiencing distress while he was sitting in his car, and that's where a ranch hand found him.

The ranch hand told Sheriff's detectives ... the singer began to complain that he was not feeling well and was having trouble breathing. Paramedics were called and Jones was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. Authorities say there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding his death.

Jones is survived by his wife Jessica and 4 daughters from previous marriages. He was 66-years-old. Jones was married to Jessica Pacheco -- his 3rd wife.

Jones joined The Monkees in 1965 ... along with Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork ... and together they churned out a bunch of hugely popular songs including 3 number 1 hits -- "Daydream Believer," "Last Train to Clarksville" and "I'm a Believer."

Country star Taylor Swift has a crush on Britney Spears. Taylor went nuts when she found her Britney’s poster missing from her bathroom! Yeah, you heard me!

Thank God it was just her thoughtful mom cleaning up the place and giving the poster a more honorable location in Taylor’s house. Britney – from bathroom to bedroom in Taylor’s latest MySpace blog entry:

“While I was in L.A. my mom reorganized my bathroom… But then I turned around and was startled by something… Where was my Britney Spears poster…. No, this can’t be right… WHERE is it?!? I searched the room frantically for a few seconds before finding it’s new spot. My Britney Spears poster (from 6th grade) had been relocated to my bedroom, which is another AMAZING upgrade. This way, I see it more often and it more proudly displays my unwavering devotion to Britney Spears.”

Walking the red carpet for their movie premiere, The Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato looked great as they posed for the press and fans alike. Jonas Brothers: 3D Concert Experience opens on Friday February 27th. Taylor Swift is also in the film and she chose to not walk the red carpet – instead stayed in Nashville and took in a hockey game.

Former "The X Factor" contestant Dexter Haygood said he wasn't pushed off Fox's new singing contest. He jumped.
Haygood was among five contestants eliminated from the show last week. But the rock singer with the James Brown rasp said that what viewers saw didn't reflect the whole story, including a behind-the-scenes agreement to ensure the swift exit he wanted.
According to Haygood, 49, who was part of mentor-judge Nicole Scherzinger's group of age 30-plus contestants, he told Scherzinger two days before last Wednesday's live performance show that he was dissatisfied with "X Factor."
"I wanted to leave the show because I was unhappy that I was unable to be a rock artist. I grew up on rock," said Haygood, of Memphis, Tenn., who enjoyed the spotlight in the 1980s as frontman for the rock group Xavion, which toured at one point with Hall & Oates.
Being called on to do pop songs such as Beyonce's "Crazy in Love" and Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl" was aggravating, Haygood said: "Can you imagine Steven Tyler, Mick Jagger, James Brown, doing (the `Crazy in Love' chorus) `uh oh uh oh uh'?"
Producers "seemed to have their way of doing things. I'm not sure why they wouldn't let me be me," he said Tuesday.
Scherzinger, former member of the Pussycat Dolls, took his complaint to the show's producers and came back the same day with an offer, according to Haygood: He would be bounced on Thursday's results show if he agreed to return for the season finale.

A close friend of the British prime minister was found dead in a portable toilet at one of the country's leading music festivals Sunday, authorities said.

Christopher Shale died in unexplained circumstances in the VIP area of the Glastonbury Festival, an entertainment extravaganza that's one of the fixtures of Britain's music calendar.

Shale, who was in his 50s, chaired the Conservative Association in David Cameron's West Oxfordshire constituency, and in a statement Cameron said he and his wife Samantha were devastated by the news.

"He was a great friend and has been a huge support over the last decade," Cameron said. "A big rock in my life has suddenly been rolled away ... like so many others Sam and I have lost a close and valued friend."

Shale was staying in a restricted, celebrity-packed area of the festival, which is held on a farm in southwestern England and has drawn some 170,000 people. He was discovered by police shortly after 9 a.m. Festival organizer Michael Eavis said he was told the incident was "a suicide situation" but police have yet to confirm that.

"It is only a couple of hours ago," Inspector Chris Morgan said. "We are still working on establishing a cause of death."

News of the death comes the same day as Shale was quoted in a national newspaper as describing the weakness of his association in unusually frank terms.