She's not quitting her highly successful daytime talk show. In fact, for Ellen DeGeneres, she's doing what the economy is forcing many people to do right now: Get a second job.

The difference, however, is that the comedienne is not working at Wal-Mart. Instead, she'll take over the seat left cold by singer Paula Abdul as the newest full-time judge on "American Idol" when the show returns at mid-season on Fox.

"I've watched since the beginning, and I've always been a huge fan," DeGeneres said in a statement, courtesy of E!. "So getting this job is a dream come true. And think of all the money I'll save from not having to text in my vote."

DeGeneres joins executive producer Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson and Kara DioGuardi on the panel that will help decide the professional fate of young singers looking to get their big break on television's most-watched program. She replaces Abdul, who left the show last month after not being able to reach an agreement on a new contract. According to rumors, Abdul felt she should be paid as much, if not more, than Cowell and host Ryan Seacrest.

"Hopefully I'm the people's point of view, because I'm just like you," DeGeneres said. "I sit at home and watch it. I'm not looking at it in a critical way, from the music producer's mind. I'm looking at it as a person who's going to buy the music, and who's going to relate to that person."

DeGeneres has won 12 Emmys for her work over the years which includes her hit talk show, as well as her popular 1990s series "Ellen." She made waves in 1997 when she came out as a lesbian, a move which was incorporated into her character on the show. While the publicity surrounding her coming out helped boost the ratings of "Ellen" initially, the show was cancelled in 1998.

"Ellen" celebrated its 1,000th episode in May.