“American Idol” will have four judges this season season – the most significant change in the history of TV’s most popular show.
The fourth judge is a 37-year-old songwriter from Scarsdale named Kara DioGuardi, Fox announced this morning.
She’ll join “Idol” judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson when the new season of “Idol” premieres in January.
Producers say they’re adding a fourth judge to the American “AI” because the show’s many international editions have also had four judges.
“We had originally intended for ‘American Idol’ to have four judges,” executive producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz said in a statement. “We’ve seen from our international series that having a fourth judge creates a dynamic that benefits both the contestants and viewers.”
DioGuardi is a songwriter and music-industry entrepreneur. She is co-owner of a music publishing company called Arthouse Entertainment.
She is credited with writing dozens of hit songs for many top recording stars, including Kylie Minogue (“Spinning Around”), Marc Anthony (“I’ve Got You”), Hillary Duff (“Fly”), Faith Hill (“Lost”), Santana (“I’m Feeling You”) and Kelly Clarkson (“Walkaway”).
In fact, the song “Spinning Around” was originally written for Paula Abdul, for an album that was never made, according to songwritersuniverse.com.