Ellen Degeneres has quit her role as a judge on American Idol – less than a year after she was drafted in to replace Paula Abdul.

Is Jennifer Lopez poised to step?

A person familiar with negotiations for Lopez squealed on Thursday that the songstress/actress/dancer has inked a deal to join Fox TV’s hit singing contest as a judge. Jenn – whose hits include “Waiting for Tonight”
and “Love Don’t Cost a Thing” — has appeared as a mentor on Idol.

Deadline.com dished the deets on JLo’s budding relationship with the show in a scoop published late Thursday: “Jennifer Lopez, who’s singing and acting career has been on the skids after her recent movies failed at the box office and she was dropped by her record company Sony. We hear her manager Benny Medina, whom she once fired, orchestrated the meeting with the American Idol producers a month ago, and negotiations have been ongoing ever since. We’ve learned a deal was closed earlier this week under the utmost secrecy.”

DeGeneres announced she is leaving the show after one season, following fellow judge Simon Cowell out of the door. The Emmy-winning comedienne-talk show host said she realized that while she “loved discovering, supporting and nurturing young talent, it was hard for me to judge people and sometimes hurt their feelings.”

Ellen also blamed her departure on her hectic work schedule.

Lopez is one of many pop star names being bandied about as potential new judges. Reps for singers Elton John and Justin Timberlake have denied recent reports that the stars were in talks to fill the empty seat vacated when Cowell ditched A.I. to jumpstart the US adaptation of the UK’s The X Factor. Still said to be in the running are Harry Connick Jr., Jessica Simpson, and Chris Isaak.