The new season of television’s American Idol hasn’t even begun yet – it starts in the US on January 19 and in South Africa, on DStv, soon afterwards – and already there is scandal brewing over pay demands, with the reality show’s long-time host, Ryan Seacrest, reportedly fuming over new judge Jennifer Lopez having her future salary increases linked to his.
National Enquirer reports that 35-year-old Seacrest takes home $15 million (R100m) annually for his presenting role on American Idol and that new judge Lopez, the singer-actress replacing Ellen DeGeneres next season, will scoop $12m a year.
However, Seacrest is said to be decidedly unhappy that 41-year-old Lopez, who has a year-long contract, has arranged a salary increase every time Seacrest gets one.
The magazine quotes an unnamed source as stating: “Ryan hasn’t confronted J-Lo, but when he heard her future raises are tied to his raises, he was furious.”
Among other changes, the King of Mean, Simon Cowell, who has been with the show since its inception in 2002, has left to be replaced as a judge by Aerosmith vocalist Steven Tyler, while songwriter Kara DioGuardi, who has been a judge since 2009, has now also been axed.
In the new season (season 10) of the show, Jimmy Iovine, chairman of the Interscope Geffen A&M Records group, the new partner of American Idol, will reportedly be the sole in-house mentor with no weekly guest mentor, as in other seasons.
The new season reportedly will have an increased focus on “reality TV” elements, such as the contestants making music videos and living in a house together.
Word is that other significant changes to the show’s format are also promised and that Nigel Lythgoe, the executive producer of So You Think You Can Dance, will return as American Idol’s executive producer.
Wikipedia reports that season 10 was the first to include online auditions. Contestants could submit a 40-second video audition via Myspace, between September 15 and October 10.
The rules are otherwise the same and the online auditions will be judged in a similar fashion to the live auditions, the site confirms.
Interestingly, six of the nine American Idol winners, including its first five, have come from the American South.
The three exceptions are Jordin Sparks, who came from Arizona, David Cook from Missouri and last year’s winner, Lee DeWyze, who is from Illinois.
Data from Nielsen SoundScan, a music-sales tracking service, showed that of the 47 million CDs sold by American Idol contestants until January 2010, 85 percent were by contestants with ties to the American South.
Meanwhile, news about Adam Lambert, the flamboyant 2009 runner-up to Kris Allen, is that a revamped version of his hit debut album, For Your Entertainment, has been released.
Titled For Your Entertainment: Tour Edition, it is a two-disc set that contains five bonus tracks: Time For Miracles, Master Plan, Down the Rabbit Hole, Voodoo and Can’t Let You Down.
A bonus DVD offers eight previously unreleased videos, as well as music videos of If I Had You, For Your Entertainment and Whataya Want From Me? Also on the second disc is a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the video for If I Had You, Lambert’s latest chart-climber. - The Mercury