Capping off a week of American Idol next judge rumors gone mad, The Hollywood Reporter claims Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban are close to signing deals to become next season’s American Idol judges with Mariah Carey.
The Hollywood Reporter reports Idol sponsor Coke’s issues with Nicki Minaj’s Pepsi sponsorship have been worked out, and Minaj is close to signing a deal that will pay her ” around $8 million to join the show with additional allowances for wardrobe, hair and makeup.”
Meanwhile Keith Urban, who sounded very cagey when asked in a New Zealand radio interview about whether he might become an Idol judge may be coming in for a bargain $3-$4 million. THR also says that Brad Paisley, who was also in talks with Idol to become a judge “apparently dropped out of the conversation because he wanted to match Minaj’s pay scale, which was a nonstarted with Idol brass.”
Addressing the future of Idol mainstay Randy Jackson and the possibility of a 4th judge, THR further reports:
The only question mark remains Randy Jackson, whose fate has not yet been decided. He might stay on as a fourth judge, or he might not, say sources. Idol producers are still talking with prospective judges for that fourth slot, and if they can find the right fit for the right price, Jackson could be shifted off the judges’ panel for the first time in the show’s history.
But as Carey’s co-manager and an Idol loyalist from the start, Jackson is still likely to have a major role on the show, even if it’s not as an official judge.
