‘American Idol’ judges feared Carrie Underwood wouldn’t fit in and for a good reason: ‘We heard...’
There's a new addition to 'American Idol' Season 23, and it's Carrie Underwood. Katy Perry served as the show's judge from seasons 16 to 22, for seven whole years, and needless to say, the 'E.T.' singer left an indelible mark on the show, which many wondered would be hard to replace. No one ever thought Underwood, the season 4 winner of 'Idol', would be the right choice for the judges' table. In hindsight, it makes perfect sense to cast Underwood as a judge, someone who won the earliest seasons of the show and went on to become arguably one of the most successful singers from 'American Idol'.
That said, there were a lot of factors stopping Underwood from being a judge on 'Idol.' Firstly, Life & Style reported that Mike Fisher, Underwood's husband, was hesitant about his wife joining the show. Underwood lives on a large farm in Tennessee with her family outside of Nashville. Since the show was being shot in Los Angeles, Fisher wasn't sure if Underwood would be able to travel between the two locations. A source went on to say, "Mike is worried Carrie won’t be able to balance her life, commuting between Tennessee and LA. It’s a huge adjustment, more than her residency in Las Vegas, which they never saw eye to eye on, either."
That said, Underwood's fellow judges, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie, admitted they had their doubts about the decision to have Underwood on the show, as revealed in an interview with Billboard. When asked how Carrie's joining the judges' panel impacted everyone else, Richie said, "We heard, 'She’s so sweet, so cute,' and we thought we might have a problem with her, because where’s that vicious side?" It wasn’t until she had to say no to a contestant for the first time that things got real. And then she finally had to say no to someone. The first time, we almost had to stop the show. She said to Luke, 'Do I have to do this some more?' I said, 'You’ve got about a hundred more to go.'"
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Despite the initial hesitation, Richie added that Underwood is a refreshing presence on the show, as he said, "She brings a certain compassion to the show that I’m loving because she’s very caring." Bryan shared the sentiment as he stated, "Lionel and I had seven years to learn how to work on the fly. Carrie rolled right in here and just started picking up the role of what it is." Even Ryan Seacrest went on to voice his opinion: "One thing she and I are very aligned on is that she is punctual. She can keep a schedule, and it’s a great symbiotic relationship."
Finally, when Underwood was asked how she felt making the transition from contestant to judge, Underwood poured her heart out: "I’m just so happy to be here. It’s definitely different, but it’s difficult. I mean, when we’re discussing contestants, I was on these [contestant] boards 20 years ago, and they were moving my picture around trying to see what board I was going to fit into, so I take it really seriously."
