Summary
- Lionel Richie teases the replacement for Katy Perry on American Idol, suggesting Kelly Clarkson or Taylor Swift.
- Luke Bryan thinks Meghan Trainor should join, while Lionel prefers a former American Idol winner as a judge.
- Katy Perry is leaving after season 22, possibly for music projects, but hasn’t ruled out returning to the show.
American Idol’s Lionel Richie is teasing who will replace Katy Perry as a judge in season 23. American Idol ran on FOX for 15 seasons before its cancelation in 2016. Katy, along with Luke Bryan and Lionel became the judges since the show’s revival in 2018 on ABC. However, in February 2024, Katy shocked viewers by announcing she would be leaving the show once season 22 wraps. Luke and longtime host Ryan Seacrest think it would be fun to see Meghan Trainor taking Katy’s place after he’s gone. Meanwhile, Lionel thinks it should be a former American Idol winner.
“Kelly, if you don’t have anything else to do, I’d like to drop that out there. Big fan!”
Lionel told ET that he thinks first-ever American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson would be the perfect judge. Lionel ran into Kelly over the weekend. He didn’t want to bring the open American Idol judge’s position up. However, he brought it up and “slipped important notes.” Lionel laughed as he added, “Kelly, we’ve been together a long time.” Lionel admitted it was going to be a task to find someone who could be able to replace Katy’s sense of humor. He spoke about getting someone with no ego since the judges “insult each other so much.”
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Lionel Richie Also Wants Taylor Swift To Replace Katy Perry
Will Taylor Step Into Her Former Enemy’s Shoes?
Lionel explained, “When you’re with Luke, he doesn’t know that he’s killing you, you understand?” However, according to Lionel, that’s what makes judging American Idol such a wonderful experience. At a certain point, nothing is about the judges, but about the “kids,” the contestants. Lionel admitted that he had a list, and told Kelly that if she had nothing to do, she could consider returning to American Idol, but as a judge. Meanwhile, Lionel also has another name on his list that he’d like to see associated with the reality TV show.
“By the way, Taylor, if you’re available, we’d like to have you out here.”
Lionel decided to shoot for the stars by mentioning Taylor Swift’s name as a replacement for Katy. Taylor is one of the hottest stars in the world at the moment, especially after the release of her highly anticipated breakup album, “The Tortured Poets Department.” Lionel looked at the camera and addressed Taylor during the interview, asking her to call him. Interestingly, Katy and Taylor have famously gone from being friends to enemies and are back to being friends at the moment. It is believed Taylor was referring to Katy in her 1989 track “Bad Blood,” and Katy called her Regina George.
Taylor and Katy have ended their enmity for good as of 2024. Katy even attended Taylor’s Eras Tour concert in Sydney. Katy has already been making space for other things as she’d wanted to do after leaving American Idol. She isn’t going to retire to an island yet, but Katy wants to go see the world while also making new music. Katy has a very exciting year planned for her popstar girlies after season 22. However, Katy, who’s performing at Brazil’s Rock in Rio music festival in September 2024, has not completely ruled out returning to the long-running show.
Source: ET
American Idol
American Idol is a reality singing competition that adds to the international “Idol” brand, conceived initially in the U.K. as Pop Idol. Holding massive auditions across the U.S., American Idol invited several contestants to perform in front of a panel of judges that would determine whether or not they’d go on to future rounds for a chance at competing in the fully televised premiere of the show. Contestants are voted off each week by American participation via voting through various mediums, and the winner of the competition would be given a contract with a record label to secure a future as America’s next musical idol.
- Release Date
- June 11, 2002
- Seasons
- 22
- Streaming Service(s)
- FOX
- Franchise(s)
- American Idol
