As widely expected, the judging lineup for “American Idol” season 10 will be Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson, with Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, acting as an in-house mentor to contestants, with an assist from producers Timbaland and Polow Da Don.
The announcement was made before the Los Angeles round of auditions at the Forum Wednesday morning, an event that was glammed up with some smoke and neon lights — and sequins on Lopez’s part — perhaps in order to distract from the fact the news was widely leaked weeks ago.
Earlier this year it was announced that “Idol” would switch its label allegiance from Sony BMG to UMG after 9 years; Iovine’s role as mentor will include behind-the-scenes segments with Iovine helping the contestants.
While he didn’t give specifics, Nigel Lythgoe, the producer said there will be some rules changes to the show, and while he’s still open to celebrity visits, there will be no more artist mentors besides Iovine. “We are no longer going to get the country singer to sing rock,” Lythgoe said. “We-and Jimmy-going to get them to stay in the genre they belong.” The music choices will vary more by decade this year, he said, as opposed to changing up themes entirely.