Keith Urban apparently wants to come back to American Idol next year, but it will all depend on whether he's asked back.
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"I mean, I literally enjoy coming to work every day, and that's a rarity. I joined an ensemble like this in the same way I joined a band. I like being in a team and I felt that immediately, with [host Ryan Seacrest] and [Randy Jackson], particularly."
Urban signed on to judge American Idol's current twelfth season on Fox alongside Jackson, Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey.
Earlier this week, Fox had confirmed prior reports that the network's considering a drastic shakeup that could replace Idol's entire judging panel next season.
Fox chairman Kevin Reilly told reporters during a Monday conference call the judges will be "welcome" back but "everything at this point is on the table," according to Entertainment Weekly.
Reilly's statement came after Jackson's recent announcement that he has decided to quit the show following this season. While it has yet to be confirmed whether Carey and Minaj will return to Idol, a source told Us Weekly it's "safe to say" Minaj won't be back, as she had planned on doing only one season anyway.
Reports that American Idol will reportedly be dumping its entire roster of judges for next year's season began circulating earlier this month.
"All four are gone," a source told The Wrap. "They feel they've lost their core audience and they want it back."
The reality singing competition has experienced a steady decline in viewership since it peaked in its sixth season. Idol's ratings are reportedly down 22% percent this season and hit an all-time low during a recent Thursday night live results show broadcast when only 11 million viewers tuned in, according to The Wrap.
However, Reilly told reporters he doesn't believe the twelfth season's colorful and controversial judging panel -- as Minaj and Carey are often shown arguing -- is the primary cause of the significant ratings decline.
"More so than any one factor is the age of the show right now, but [also] maybe the format this year," Reilly reportedly explained. "We expanded some of the middle rounds we did a boy-girl thing that went over three weeks -- that's really where the ratings took their biggest hit."
About The Author: Elizabeth Kwiatkowski
