American Idol has been hurtin’ as of late, with viewership dropping off rather steeply and a season largely dominated by the contrived Nicki Minaj / Mariah Carey feud. Well, it’s not going to get any better any time soon, as Mariah and Nicki are both jumping ship after one year, and Randy Jackson, the last original judge on the show, is also reportedly leaving, according to HuffPo …
In a statement, Fox, FremantleMedia and 19 Entertainment said of Carey’s departure: “Mariah Carey is a true global icon — one of the most accomplished artists on the planet — and we feel extremely fortunate that she was able to bring her wisdom and experience to the American Idol contestants this season. We know she will remain an inspiration to Idol hopefuls for many seasons to come.” The news follows Randy Jackson’s recent departure from Fox’s reality juggernaut, with fellow judge Nicki Minaj announcing her Idol exit a few hours later. Keith Urban remains the last judge standing, but is not expected to return. Even before Carey’s exit, there were rumblings that Idol producers planned to replace all four judges and start fresh for Season 13, potentially with a judging panel made up of Idol alums such as Jennifer Hudson, Kelly Clarkson and Adam Lambert. Don’t hold your breath for Clarkson to be involved, though rep for the former winner told The Hollywood Reporter that she will not be judging Season 13.
The biggest problem Idol has to deal with at this point is that there’s an over-saturation of singing competitions, and despite being one of the first ones out there, it’s showing it’s age as compared to more contemporary shows like The Voice. At this point, it’s going to need 50cc’s of new shot into it.