Kelly Rowland strikes a pose in this 'The X Factor (UK)' promo pic.

Well, at least now we know Kelly Rowland will have the time to focus on making a solid album. The songbird has officially announced her departure from ‘The X Factor (UK)’, thus ending her term as a judge on the popular competition show.

Citing scheduling conflicts as the main reason for her leaving the series, Rowland gracefully bowed out of ‘The X Factor (UK)’ and thanked Simon Cowell for the opportunity. However, no indication regarding her plans to join the US incarnation of the show was shared.

Read Rowland’s statement about leaving ‘The X Factor (UK)’ below:

“After much speculation, we can officially confirm today that Kelly Rowland has decided not to return as a judge again for this year’s UK X Factor. Global commitments coupled with the show’s increasing demands this year mean that, despite weeks of deliberation with the show, Kelly has not been able to agree a deal that fits into her autumn/winter schedule, so sadly cannot accept a place on the 2012 panel.

Kelly thoroughly enjoyed her role as a judge on the show, but felt that if there couldn’t be a workable solution to scheduling issues so that she could effectively juggle her other commitments then she couldn’t wholeheartedly commit to the show this year.”

Rowland stated:

“I love the UK and being part of the show last year. Mentoring the girls was such an incredible experience I will never forget. I would like to thank Simon for the great opportunity and asking me to be a judge last season.”

Hopefully, this means that Rowland will spend the next few months crafting a stronger album than ‘Here I Am’ as well as a well-structured US promotional campaign. Really, as the sales of ‘Here I Am’ proved – less than 220K copies sold in the US to date – one hit R&B single isn’t enough to sell records.

Info via Punchbowl Blog!

Thoughts?