‘American Idol’ Announces Season 3 Judges

Lionel Richie / Twitter

Even though Fox cancelled American Idol after 15 seasons, the love for the singing competition show is still alive and well. ABC brought it back just a few years later and has had two seasons that people just can’t stop talking about.

Season 2 brought us the charming Laine Hardy as the champion, who gave incredible performances week after week.

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Before the regular TV season was over in May, ABC revealed which of their shows they have either renewed or cancelled and for several days, Idol hadn’t made an appearance on either of those lists.

That all changed when when American Idol confirmed they were coming back for a third season on Twitter. “We’re singing with excitement! American Idol is coming back for a third season on ABC!” they wrote.

Bobby Bones, who served as a mentor the entire 2nd season, replied to the tweet with three hand clapping emojis.

For months now, there have been talks of budget cuts due to “a decline in ratings,” according to TV Line. These cuts are likely due to judges Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan‘s salaries, with Perry making a whopping $20+ million per season. Because of the cuts, the judging panel was up in the air, but the show just announced on Twitter that all three will be returning!

Perry, Richie, and Bryan all tweeted about their excitement to return to the show.

Bobby Bones is also set to return as in-house mentor.

The only name not confirmed to be returning yet is host Ryan Seacrest. Back in May, Variety reported that Seacrest is most likely under a long-term deal with ABC, seeing as his Emmy Award-winning daytime talkshow Live With Kelly & Ryan is on the same network.

Are you excited to have Perry, Richie and Bryan back?!

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