So what does Simon Cowell think of American Idol hiring Mariah Carey as its new judge?
Cowell has previously expressed enthusiasm in Carey as a candidate for X Factor. But now that she’s joined his previous show, he injected a little note of skepticism about her ability to crush the dreams of wannabe pop singers.
“I think she’s going to find it difficult to say ‘no’ [to contestants],” Cowell told reporters via satellite from Miami during The X Factor‘s panel at critics’ press tour in Beverly Hills. “She’s sweet.” Cowell then gamely added: “I think she’s going to be great.”
Speaking of judges being too polite, Cowell’s new hires, Britney Spears and Demi Lovato, didn’t demonstrate much bite during the panel, though Cowell assured Spears is “quite mean” and Lovato is “a brat.”
Spears and Lovato also had some playful banter with the 52-year-old Cowell that he seemed to enjoy (Lovato on Spears: “She’s a sweetheart.” Cowell: “She’s as sweet as a lemon.” Lovato: “You’re not going to gang up–you’re going to have two girls–” Cowell: “I’ve had it.”).
But while it’s all smiles and slightly creepy cross-generational flirting now, who knows if X Factor‘s new judges will last a second season. One critic pointed out that the last judge Cowell dubbed a “brat” was Cheryl Cole, who spent about two seconds as a judge on the U.S. version of X Factor before being replaced before the first season premiered.
“Nobody has any job security any more — including myself,” Cowell said, though reassured: “I don’t envisage this [panel] changing for awhile.”
"They are harder to please than me or L.A.," Cowell says of Britney and Demi. "They are very happy, these two, in giving people a no. That's why we hired them."
Simon also revealed Britney has always topped his fantasy judge list: "Britney, I'm not going to lie about this, I always said the number one person I would want on one of these shows was Britney because I was fascinated with her as a person, as a pop star…She's a really, really good judge."
"Demi is a brat," Simon continued, "but there's something really likable about her as well. I think the show, because it has such a young audience, it needed someone younger."
That said, let the record show that we are so in for the new season of X Factor. If only to solve this mystery: Is Britney Spears really the hardass "Bad Britney" judge we've seen from Fox's cleverly crafted promo? Or will she be the question-dodging softie we saw in today's press conference?
When asked if she believes the reality competition shows are putting too much emphasis on judges instead of the contestants, Britney paused and replied: "I think it's about the talent."
And where do her musical tastes currently lie? "I'm a huge fan of hip hop. I love rap. I don't know the proper way to rap, I don't rap. I appreciate it. I like cabaret. I love live music. I love bands."
Demi held her own against some tough Q's. When her expertise and knowledge were called into question, she countered: "I think that the expertise I'm able to contribute is I'm listening to the radio right now and I know a lot of what my friends like. We're in our early 20s and late teens and it's a really interesting thing when you bring a much younger demographic into the competition. I think we know what is needed in this industry, what is missing."
As for the search for new hosts, Simon told reporters: "That's the plan, to have a boy and girl. Ideally, we'd like someone who hasn't actually been a host before…[We] are screen-testing people for the next three or four weeks." The new hosts likely will be announced mid-August.
Honey source
Well I believe Mariah is proved to us that she is the Queen of Shade. Idol will be so entertaining! Can't wait for dem gifs tbh.