Perry ready to find next superstar
LOS ANGELES — Katy Perry has become a music superstar with a continuous stream of hit records, gigantic tours and even a Super Bowl performance.
She’ll soon add to her resume when she joins Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie as a celebrity judge on the ABC revival of “American Idol,” premiering Sunday.
During a press conference to discuss “Idol,” Perry talked about being involved in the process of selecting a winner.
“Literally, we are wasting our time if we do not find a star,” said Perry, pausing. “(But) America doesn’t need another star. They need a real, legit American idol. It’s a crowded place, and I take it really seriously, sometimes to my detriment. But I’m very cut-and-dried and get straight to the point.”
During pre-premiere auditions, Perry has heard numerous heartbreaking stories from contestants, told in hopes of winning favor with the judges. She’s sensitive to what some have endured but also knows that
most every successful singer faces hardships — as have the three judges.
She deals with the sentimentality by remembering that music is a business and that she must make decisions based on the raw material standing in front of her. As for her fellow judges, Perry said Richie represents “the legacy,” who shares many stories about music history, and Bryan is more of a nurturer.
She fills a different role, she said.
“I am very serious about it. I do the jokes. I get up and dance. But, at the end of the day, I see things that the other judges don’t see. I see where the music industry is going and how much emphasis is put on personalities and different styles.”
The only holdover from the original “American Idol,” which ran on Fox for 15 seasons, is Ryan Seacrest, who will return as the host. The changes were deliberate, executive producer Trish Kinane said.
“We weren’t looking to replicate that,” Kinane said of the original group of judges. “We took a long time to put this judging panel together, and that was because we wanted to get it right and wanted judges with credibility, who knew what they were talking about, were huge successes in their own right, who were articulate and who generally cared about the contestants.
“And that’s the difference.”
The winner of this edition of “American Idol” will be crowned May 21.
Perry wants to do what she can to ensure that the winner experiences some of the success she has had, especially when the champion first steps in front of a massive audience to perform.
“It’s a great feeling,” Perry said, “and you get really addicted to it.”