‘American Idol’ Season 20 Full Cast List: Katy Perry to Ryan Seacrest, meet the ABC judges
As it celebrates its 20th season on television, the singing talent show promises a season unlike any other and will pay respect to its own history. Former favorites will return to help the fresh set of contestants on their way to becoming the next 'American Idol'.
'American Idol' has helped launch the careers of some of the industry's greatest names. Oscar and Grammy Award winners, Broadway artists, and former political candidates are among the winners and former contestants of American Idol. Meghan Wolflick, Executive Producer and showrunner of the show, said the following judges will return in a press statement announcing the show's comeback. "We're thrilled that Katy, Lionel, Luke, and Ryan will be back to help discover our next American Idol," stated Executive Producer Eli Holzman.
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Katy Perry
Raised in a religious family, Perry's first experience performing was singing in church. At the age of 15, she began visiting Nashville to get songwriting and demo recording expertise. After signing with Capitol Records in 2007, Katy Perry made her debut with "One of the Boys" in 2008. Her follow-up album, "Teenage Dream" (2010), established her career as a global star, making her the only female artist (tied with Michael Jackson) to have five No. 1 singles from a single album on the Billboard Hot 100 list ("California Gurls," "Teenage Dream," "Firework"). Perry has amassed a total of 50 billion streams in her 12 years with Capitol, as well as global sales of approximately 47.5 million adjusted albums and 135 million songs. She was also the first person to reach 100 million Twitter followers. Her performance at the 2015 Super Bowl is the highest-rated in the event's history. She was the first female musician to have four videos with a combined total of one billion views. Perry is a passionate supporter of many humanitarian initiatives in addition to being one of the most successful musical artists of all time. In 2016, she received the Audrey Hepburn Humanitarian Award.
Luke Bryan
Luke Bryan's career has been studded by songs that have had a lasting influence, right from his early days as a composer in Nashville to his present role as one of country music's reigning superstars. Luke Bryan's music has always mirrored life in all of its complexities, including both the difficulties and the overwhelming joy. The Leesburg, Georgia native and 'American Idol' judge has twice been honored Entertainer of the Year by the Country Music Association and the Academy of Country Music, in addition to being chosen the CMT Artist of the Year six times. In the last decade, he's received over 40 major music awards and played in front of approximately 12 million people on seven major tours, including 36 stadium gigs, 11 Farm Tours, six years of Spring Break shows, and six sold-out 'Crash My Playa' events.
Lionel Richie
Lionel Richie is one of only two composers in history to have nine consecutive No. 1 records. He has received an Oscar, a Golden Globe, four GRAMMY Awards, and the distinctions of MusicCares Person of the Year in 2016 and Kennedy Center Honoree in 2017. He has sold over 125 million records worldwide. Richie sold out arenas all over the world with his latest 'All the Hits, All Night Long Tour', which featured a setlist of his brightest and finest songs. In recent years, he has performed at festivals such as Bonnaroo, Outside Lands, and Glastonbury, where he drew the largest audience ever at the festival with over 200,000 people.
Ryan Seacrest
Ryan Seacrest is a multi-award-winning television host, radio personality, mega-producer, philanthropist, and entrepreneur. Seacrest is the host of "On Air with Ryan Seacrest," the No. 1 nationally syndicated morning drive-time show for iHeart Media's 102.7 KIIS-FM in Los Angeles, as well as a nationally syndicated Top 40 radio show.
Seacrest also co-hosts and co-executives the Emmy Award-winning daytime show "Live with Kelly and Ryan," for which he was nominated for Outstanding Entertainment Talk Show Host.
‘American Idol’ Season 20 starts on February 27. The show will be aired on ABC and streamed on Hulu.