Katy Perry is the first judge named for new ‘American Idol’
Pop star Katy Perry is the first judge to be named for the new season of “American Idol,” which was revived by ABC for the 2017-18 season.
The show, which pulled in 38 million viewers at its peak and has “produced over 375 No. 1s to date, counting all national and domestic charts,” according to Billboard, previously aired for 15 seasons from 2002 to 2016 on ABC’s rival network Fox. It was canceled in 2016 amid declining ratings.
“I am honored and thrilled to be the first judge bringing back the American Idol tradition of making dreams come true for incredible talents with authentic personalities and real stories,” Perry said in a statement. “I’m always listening to new music, and love discovering diamonds in the rough from mentoring young artists on my label, or highlighting new artists on my tours, I want to bring it back to the music.”
She also posted a note on Twitter saying that she was thrilled that “American Idol” is back.
“American Idol” isn’t the first deceased pop culture relic that Perry helped resurrect. Following the success of her debut, MTV pegged Perry to help revive its “Unplugged” series, which features artists performing in an acoustic setting.
It was fairly unprecedented for a pop singer to participate in the series, which was best known for stripping down loud rock bands like Nirvana or presenting singer-songwriters like Tori Amos in an intimate setting.
Of MTV’s decision, AllMusic wrote, “It makes perfect sense that MTV Unplugged chose Katy, since it benefits them both: she approaches the show with the respect it once garnered, while she uses the show as a way to rebrand herself as a serious pop auteur.”
The same can arguably be said of her role on the new “American Idol.”
ABC’s announcement came Tuesday, not long after Perry revealed that she has a new album coming out soon from Capitol Records called “Witness,” which drops on June 9.