Who's still judging on this show? Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez—gone. Simon Cowell (the only reason to ever watch it in the first place)—gone for years now. Good ol' Randy Jackson is the only guy who's stayed, and he's never really been a dynamic personality.
Depending on your point of view, though, the lineup might get interesting soon. Mariah Carey has already said she's on board to judge next year. And now both Nicki Minaj and Kanye West are in talks to be judges on the show, despite neither really identifying first as singers. Minaj has sung passably on songs before, but West's auto-tuned efforts have been much maligned (even though "808s and Heartbreak" was still a terrific album).
This rumor comes from TMZ, which reports that Idol's higher-ups have already approached Kanye and offered him an $18 million a year contract:
Sources close to the production tell TMZ, "Idol" honchos reached out to Kanye recently about filling one of the open judging spots ... and Kanye expressed interest.
But that doesn't mean he's on board -- we're told Yeezy is still unsure about accepting the gig. The way it was put to us ... "He's on the fence," because he's not sure if "A.I." is in his wheelhouse.
And there's another big hang up -- cash. Informed sources tell TMZ ... "Idol" would "at least match Mariah's salary" -- a cool $18 mil a year.
