Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan will return as judges along with host Ryan Seacrest for season 22 of American Idol (AI) premiering spring 2024. Season 22 will see all three judges return for a seventh season. Perry, Bryan and Richie first joined American Idol in 2018 when it was revived by ABC, following 15 seasons on Fox.
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Seacrest has hosted the show since its debut in 2002, along with early judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson. The first season winner was Kelly Clarkson. The longtime AI emcee recently signed on to host Wheel of Fortune once Pat Sajak retires by the 2024 season and will extend his television duties when American Idol kicks off in the spring.
Auditions for season 22 are set to kick off on Wednesday (August 2) with the return of “Idol Across America,” a live virtual nationwide search for contestants, which discovered season 21 winner Iam Tongi, before the show returns to ABC in spring 2024.
[RELATED: Iam Tongi’s Top 5 Performances on ‘American Idol’]
All AI hopefuls have the opportunity to meet an American Idol producer, from anywhere across the U.S. for their chance to proceed to the judging round of the competition in 2024. The First 700 event will also allow contenders to sign up to grab a VIP spot before anyone else. Contestants will also be given the opportunity to audition under their genre for the first time.
In May 2023, season 21 of American Idol wrapped, crowning Hawaiian singer Iam Tongi winner, followed by Megan Danielle in second place, and Colin Stough in the third spot.
“I think the beauty of ‘American Idol’ is it’s very, very driven by the talent of the kids,” said Bryan, who will kick off his Farm Tour in the fall of 2023. “It’s very important for the producers of the show and the people behind the scenes and the kids all across the country to really log on and audition and get in front of us.
Bryan continued, “With ‘Idol,’ we’ve tried to do new, fun things. I think we’ve always grown, putting new little twists on the show. The judges’ song challenge wasn’t in the show a couple years ago and that’s a fun night for us as judges.”
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