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It’s official: American Idol is adding new judges from the worlds of country music and hip hop.

Fox announced Sunday that 44-year-old Aussie singer Keith Urban and colorful 29-year-old rapper Nicki Minaj will sit with pop diva Mariah Carey at the season 12 judges table of the reality hit, along with returning judge Randy Jackson. The confirmation settles months of behind-the-scenes reports and speculation about the show’s panel that saw singers such as Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, Nick Jonas, Adam Lambert and Kanye West floated as possible judges.

“Nicki’s an unbelievably captivating international phenomenon who has made an indelible mark on rap and pop,” said Fox’s president of alternative Mike Darnell in a statement. “And Keith is another great addition to Idol – he’s one of the biggest stars in country music and I know that our fans and contestants will fall in love with him. With an unparalleled star like Mariah, fan-favorite Randy, chart-toppers like Nicki and Keith and our incomparable host Ryan [Seacrest], we’ve put together one of the most exciting judging panels around.”

Earlier this summer, Fox announced the exit of Idol season 10 and 11 judges Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez, along with the hiring of Carey. The network then strongly considered shifting Jackson to a mentor role. After quietly selecting Minaj and Urban for slots, Fox recently made an offer to Latin singer-songwriter Enrique Iglesias to fill a fourth spot, but those talks broke down last week. In addition to Carey receiving about $17 million for her role on the show, we’re hearing Urban will pull down about $4 million. According to one report, Minaj will earn around $8 million.

The network hopes the new hires will boost the ratings of the aging series — or at least stabilize its declines. Though Idol remains TV’s top entertainment series, the show suffered a record year-over-year ratings drop last season. Part of the problem is the marketplace has become more crowded with singing competition shows like NBC’s The Voice and Fox’s own X Factor. READ FULL STORY »

Is Randy Jackson leaving American Idol?

Nope. But he won’t likely be a judge next year either.

The current status of the Fox reality hit’s 12th season panel negotiations puts the 56-year-old record producer in a mentor-like role, sources confirm. Unless Jackson decides to leave the show, or the talks with his potential replacements completely fall apart, he’s expected to shift to a new position on the top-rated series. Jackson has been a well-regarded member of the show’s cast since the series debuted in 2002, but Fox and producers would like to make a judges panel clean-sweep for the 2013 season.

As has been widely reported, rapper Nicki Minaj is indeed near a deal to join the show as a judge. If hired, she’ll join pop singer Mariah Carey, who signed a contract worth about $17 million per year. Carey fills one of the spots vacated by singer Jennifer Lopez and Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler, whose exits were announced earlier this year.

The third spot, sources say, is most likely going to Australian country music star Keith Urban. READ FULL STORY »

American Idol is once again becoming more compelling for its backstage drama
than its onscreen singing competitions. Sexobsessed sexagenarian Steven Tyler is out. Poised pro Jennifer Lopez says she’s gone too. The fate of snoozily affable Randy Jackson, who’s managed to survive years of high-profile shakeups on the Fox hit, is uncertain as well.

One thing is clear: American Idol will be reinvented again before the 12th season
launches in January. Though Tyler’s departure was announced last week, the decision to overhaul the show was effectively made months ago, when the 10th season suffered the biggest ratings drop in the series’ history. Idol was down 23 percent—to 18 million viewers— from the previous year. That’s still a large
enough audience to make Idol TV’s biggest non-sports program, but it’s an alarming
decline for a costly show that’s critical to Fox’s schedule. The drop prompted Chase Carey, COO of Fox parent company NewsCorp, to tell Wall Street last February that the show needs “fresh energy.”

Though the dealmaking is still in flux, the current frontrunner to deliver that new wattage is Mariah Carey — with Janet Jackson, Katy Perry, will.i.am, Kanye West, and Fergie also on Fox’s wish list. Sources say Carey is deep into her talks with Fox and would probably score a paycheck on par with Lopez’s. (Negotiations started around $12 million a season, the same as Lopez’s first year, though will probably conclude closer to Lopez’s second-year rate of $15 million.) Despite reports that Randy Jackson will exit, insiders now expect him to stay, especially Carey comes on board (Jackson manages the pop singer). READ FULL STORY »