Mariah Carey Is New ‘American Idol’ Judge Let’s Hope Motherhood Has Made Her Less Of A Diva
The 42-year-old R&B singer is returning to the spotlight her first major gig since becoming a mom as a judge on American Idol. Carey replaces Jennifer Lopez, who’s also a mom and who was very sweet and nurturing in her role as Idol judge. For some reason, I’m envisioning Carey crushing all these young rock-star hopefuls. Is that a terrible thing to say? Granted, it’ll make for good television remember how popular Simon Cowell was (and, man, was he a meanie)? but I’m hoping that motherhood has softened Carey just a bit.
For example, maybe she’ll envision Moroccan or Monroe standing up before a panel of judges one day and think how she’d want them to be treated. (One of the judges of Canada’s Next Top Model once told me she pictured her own teen daughters up on stage and treated them accordingly.) Either way, Carey must be feeling the pressure to put on a good performance as far as judging goes since she’s making a reported $17 million for the upcoming season. (Fox won’t confirm the details of her contract, but this is what sources are estimating.)
TMZ is already attempting to create controversy with a piece about Carey’s diva tendencies. The rag quotes a source on the show, who says that Carey was a “nightmare to work with” during her brief stint as a guest mentor on American Idol in 2008. Apparently she was late for her shoot, “not very nice at all,” and extremely nit-picky about tiny details. Who knows if it’s true or not. All I know is that Carey will always be a diva, which always translates into high TV ratings. Though I, for one, am curious to see how motherhood has changed her.
(Photo: Manuil Yamalyan/WENN.com)