Lionel Richie is hoping to recruit Taylor Swift or Kelly Clarkson to replace Katy Perry on ‘American Idol’ after Perry announced her departure from the show.
In February, Perry announced she was leaving the show after the current season to focus on her music career. The former Commodores lead singer hopes to recruit Swift or Clarkson to fill her chair.
“Taylor, if you’re available, we’d like to have you out here. Call me,” he told People in an interview published Tuesday, April 23.
Swift, 34, is dominating the charts once again with her 11th full-length studio album, ‘Midnights’, which shattered numerous records upon release on Friday, April 19. It achieved over 300 million streams on that day, becoming the first in Spotify history to surpass 200 and 300 million streams in one day.
Richie knows that Swift is busy, so if she is not able to join him on ‘American Idol’, he would love to work with Clarkson, 42, who won the first season of ‘American Idol’ in 2002.
He told People that he ran into Clarkson over the weekend, which made him realize she would be a perfect replacement for Perry.
“I didn’t want to bring that up,” the “All Night Long” singer said. “Not only did I think about it, I slipped important notes. You know what I’m saying, Kelly, we’ve been together a long time.”
He added, “Kelly, if you don’t have anything else to do, I’d like to drop that out there. Big fan!”
Clarkson previously served as a coach on ‘The Voice’ from 2018 to 2021, and again in 2023. The two stars were scheduled to work together as mentors on the reality series ‘Duets’ in 2012. However, Richie left the show due to a schedule conflict and was replaced by Robin Thicke.
Since Clarkson films ‘The Voice’ in New York City, she might not be in a position to join ‘American Idol’, which films in L.A.
Richie said he knows selecting a new judge will not be easy.
“Finding someone to replace Katy with a sense of humor, it’s gotta be fun but no ego because we’re gonna insult each other so much,” he quipped.
Meanwhile, Perry recently praised Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan, 47, her fellow judges on ‘American Idol’.
“I gotta say Lionel was crazy when he came on the show,” she told Extra on Monday, April 15. “I was convinced at anything he said. He could run for president, he could be my pastor, I might go back to church for him. He could sell me anything.”
Perry added, “I love him. And to have any of these guys plus Jelly on the show would be amazing. I love you, Jelly!”
Perry has not released a new album in four years, and this week she teased new music.
The “Dark Horse” singer told Extra that her relationship with fiancé Orlando Bloom heavily influenced ‘Witness’.
“I just have yet to make a record from a place of feeling really happy and whole and full of love,” she said backstage at the 2019 iHeartRadio Music Awards on Monday, April 15. The couple were engaged in February 2019, and they share daughter Daisy, 3.
“Sometimes artists are like, ‘Oh, that’s boring, you want to make music from kind of like a tougher place,’ but actually it’s very bright and joyful, like pure joy and fun and playful and celebratory and a party,” Perry added.
