Mariah Carey Becomes Newest American Idol Judge
The only thing left to do after both Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler announced their resignation as judges on “American Idol” was to wait in anticipation until their replacements were announced. Now, we at least know who one of the replacements will be.
Fox announced yesterday that Mariah Carey will join the show for the next season. During the announcement, Fox entertainment chief Kevin Reilly had Carey on his cell phone and put her on speakerphone to speak to the Television Critics Association that was gathered at a Beverly Hills hotel for the announcement.
After saying that she couldn’t be at the event in person because “this kind of all just happened really quickly,” Carey said that, “I can’t wait to get started in the fall… I will see you in January.”
“[Carey is] the biggest recording artist that any of these (talent) shows has every had,” Reilly said at the event. He added that she was the “artist that many of these contestants have tried to emulate, have tried some of the songs, have tried to hit the notes.”
For her participation in the show, Carey will receive just short of $18 million for a one-year contract with a renewal option, according to an anonymous source cited by CBS News.
Of course, the announcement still leads to speculation as to who will fill the remaining judges seat. Additionally, it has been rumored that original judge Randy Jackson may move to a different position in the show, but that has yet to be confirmed. Reilly declined to talk about the open position.
“I can’t confirm and don’t want to talk about anyone” he said, referring to the open position. He did say that Randy Jackson “has been working with Mariah and is in fact her co-manager, and Randy was very instrumental in doing this deal.”
