After 12 years of dishing out praise and criticism to aspiring singers, Randy Jackson is leaving American Idol. Jackson, the last original judge remaining on the show, confirmed rumors of his departure Thursday in a statement to Us Weekly magazine. Jackson said he wants to focus on other projects.
"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," he said. “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."
Idol debuted in 2002 with Jackson, Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul as judges. Abdul left the show in 2009 and Cowell left in 2010.
The announcements comes on the heels of rumors that Idol bosses planned to sack Jackson, 56, along with the other three judges, Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, and Keith Urban. “All four are gone,” an insider told The Wrap.
The shakeup is intended to bring old viewers back. "They feel they've lost their core audience and they want it back,” explained the insider.
Another change allegedly in the works is a cutback on hefty pay checks -- new judges won’t receive anything near Carey’s reported $18 million a year or Minaj’s $12 million a year. “No more big checks for divas,” the source added.
Carey, Minaj and Urban have not addressed the rumors.
###
Click here for more Entertainment News
