American Idol Lives On But For How Long?

American Idol has gone through changes over the years - from the amount of people to go through to the semifinals to how many people go to the finals, etc. - but the show has also gone through changes when it comes to the hosts and the judging panel.

The first season of American Idol started off with two hosts Brian Dunkleman and Ryan Seacrest, but come season two Brian Dunkleman was no longer called to host American Idol, leaving Ryan Seacrest as the solo host. That was a smart move because there really is no point in having two hosts on the show, and Ryan Seacrest was a much better host anyway.

The judging panel on the show consisted of Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell, and Randy Jackson, who have been with us through many seasons and have become like family to us. We always thought we'd have three judges on the show but that wasn't always the case. Once in a while guest judges were added to the judging panel during the finals, but come season eight the producers decided to add a permanent fourth judge to the show and enlisted Kara DioGuardi for the job. It wasn't the best idea to add on a fourth judge because that meant more critiques to listen to. On top of that, the show sometimes went over its allotted time slot. More Idol was not a bad thing but for those who had it recorded on DVR meant not getting to see the end of the show.

Having a fourth judge on the show got mixed reviews, yet come season nine the producers still decided to go with the four judge panel. Kara DioGuardi's contract was renewed for another year, but unfortunately, we lost the beloved Paula Abdul as a judge, which was a big disappointment. To take Paula's place the producers enlisted Ellen DeGeneres to be the fourth judge. People weren't sure if Ellen was a great fit to be a judge but she proved that she could do it. Ellen provided valuable feedback to the contestants, sometimes even being tough on them like Simon. And she did make us laugh too.

At the end of season nine, Simon Cowell left the show to pursue other projects like X-Factor and people wondered what would happen to the show now that Simon would no longer be a part of it. Kara DioGuardi and Ellen DeGeneres decided not to take part in the show anymore either, which left only Randy Jackson at the judging panel. Producers had to scour for new judges to add to the almost empty panel and decided to go back to the original three people judging panel. Rumors started flying around that Jennifer Lopez (aka J.Lo) and Steven Tyler would be joining the panel and finally it was confirmed that they are going to be the new judges on the show. There are people who are fine with the new judge choices while others are very much against it.

Would the leave of Simon Cowell (and even Paula Abdul) mean the show's ratings will drastically decline? People say that it's over for Idol now that Simon is gone but only time will tell. I, for one, am all the more curious to watch the tenth season because of the new judges. I want to see how the show will be now that Paula, Simon and even Kara are gone. And with surprises in store for the tenth season, makes me even more curious to watch the show.

If rumors are true Randy Jackson's contract expires in 2011, which would mean the tenth season would be his last. Assuming that Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler were only signed for one season and won't return for season eleven, the producers will have to find three brand new judges, and maybe that would mean the end for Idol. I agree that the judges impact the show but it is really about the contestants, so who sits at the judging table is not as important as to who actually competes on the show.