Rumors have been circulating for a while now that all four "American Idol" judges, including original judge Randy Jackson, were on the hot seat and will be getting replaced next season. Reports have surfaced that producers are on the hunt for a "dream team."
Well, one judge is putting the rumors to rest. Jackson confirmed to E! News" that he will not be returning next season.
"Yo! Yo! Yo! To put all of the speculation to the rest, after 12 years of judging on American Idol I have decided it is time to leave after this season," Jackson said in a statement. "I am very proud of how we forever changed television and the music industry. It's been a life changing opportunity but I am looking forward to focusing on my company Dream Merchant 21 and other business ventures."
So there you have it. Jackson even tweeted the news to his followers. Speculation about the Idol future of the remaining judges - Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban - have still not been confirmed, but it's probably safe to say they're on their way out too.
Even though Minaj has been very vocal throughout the season about Carey, she's been strangely quiet about her status on the Idol table.
According to the New York Daily News, when asked on the Ryan Seacrest radio show if she would be retuning next season, Minaj wouldn't directly answer the question.
"That's a million-dollar question," she said. "I have to say this all the time, but I want people to know it's genuinely from my heart. I love the people on 'Idol.' I genuinely do. If I had to do this all over again, I would have done 'Idol.' Because it's fun, it's laughs.
Minaj continued that despite what happens she is thankful to have been asked to do the show.
"I feel happy here and I have to thank them for giving me this chance," Minaj said. "They could have picked anyone in the world. And they picked me. So that's all I'll say about that."
According to The Wrap, Idol producers chose high profile judges to give them a significant ratings boost, which the show has not seen. The network paid big bucks for Mariah Carey (reportedly $18 million), Nicki Minaj (reportedly $12 million) and Keith Urban (reportedly between $3-5 million) but the ratings continue to drop.
"Idol" has seen an almost 25 percent drop in ratings from last year and have experienced less buzz surrounding the show and the contestants.
