Sources say FOX has made a deal with Randy to return to the judging panel, while Simon Cowell gushes it's a 'right decision' to bring the Grammy-winning producer back on 'Idol'.
- September 11, 2012
AceShowbiz -
Randy Jackson will serve as a judge on "American Idol" for another season, latest report says. Following speculations about his future on the show, Deadline learns from "sources close to the situation" that the R&B singer/music producer has closed a deal with FOX to stay on the show with the same role. According to the site, the deal-making was wrapped quickly after talks with Enrique Iglesias broke off.
While the network hasn't confirmed it yet, Simon Cowell stated the same with his tweet. The British producer, who was also a judge on the veteran singing competition, shared to his Twitter followers on Monday, September 10, "Just heard randy is back on idol. Right decision."
Randy himself refused to address his status on the veteran singing competition when visiting "Today" that morning. Asked by co-hosts Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb if he's still a judge on "Idol", he dodged the question by saying, "Listen, it's an amazing show. My friend Mariah Carey is there. I think she's going to bring a lot of excitement to it. Let's see what happens."
He once again played coy when quizzed about Nicki Minaj's rumored involvement. "I don't know who else has been confirmed yet," he claimed. "But Mariah is there."
So far, Mariah Carey is the only confirmed judge for the upcoming installment of the reality show. Nicki Minaj has been persistently mentioned as a frontrunner for the gig, while Randy Jackson was said to be possibly downsized from judge to mentor.
