American Idol

"American Idol" is in a pickle -- the judges start their on-air auditions in New York City in 2 weeks, and only one judge has signed a deal ... sources connected with the show tell TMZ.

Our sources tell us ... only Mariah Carey has inked a deal ... and a good deal it is at $18 mil.

We know although producers are set on Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban ... they have not fully come to terms on the deal and nothing is signed.

And it gets worse. We're told "A.I." honchos want 4 judges on the panel this year, because they don't think 2 women and a man will work. And they have not picked the 4th.

But wait ... there's more. Randy Jackson -- who is being kicked upstairs to mentor -- has not signed his deal either.

Suddenly finding himself with a lot of free time on his hands, Randy Jackson was spotted at LAX yesterday ... heading out of town.

As TMZ first reported, Randy will not be back as a judge on the next season of "American Idol," but will transition into a "mentor" role on the show.

"American Idol" will have a new set of judges -- because Randy is being kicked up to "mentor." So we gotta ask:

Keith Urban is in deep negotiations with "American Idol" but the deal has NOT been signed ... TMZ has learned.

"Idol" sources tell us, the country singer is in the final negotiation stages with producers to take the third judging spot on the show -- alongside Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj, who replaced Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler.

Keith will be replacing Randy Jackson -- but he hasn't officially signed the dotted line just yet. He's still working out a few contract kinks, but it's pretty much a lock.

He'll be receiving roughly $3-4 million for his hard work -- about half what Nicki Minaj is expected to make ... and a paltry fraction of Mariah's $18 million paycheck.

As for his replacement ... sources tell us Nicki Minaj's deal is 99% done ... but still not a sure thing just yet.

We're told the honchos are keenly aware Mariah Carey isn't a fan of Minaj and doesn't want her at the table ... a fact producers LOVE because they think the conflict and tension will be good for the show.

And ... we now know A.I. will once again go with a 4th judge ... we're told producers are gunning for someone from the country music world for the third seat. Seat number 4 is up in the air.

Finally, altough "A.I." wanted Diddy or Kanye West ... we're told they are definitely out of the picture.

Thiiiiiiiiis ... is getting intense.

One of the Jackson 5's biggest hits -- "I Want You Back" -- was assassinated by former "American Idol" finalist Haley Reinhart ... who heinously botched the lyrics during a live performance, and TMZ has the footage.

You know Michael's famous words -- "oooh baby give me one more chance" ... but that's about all Reinhart remembered when she sang the Motown classic at the W Hotel in Hollywood last weekend.

In the video ... Reinhart forgets the lyrics in the VERY FIRST verse, momentarily gets back on track, and then flubs again -- all while peeking at the lyrics on her phone. Not that it helped.

Haley weathered a few hecklers -- like the dude yelling, "You don't know the words!"

Disgraced "American Idol" contestant Jermaine Jones -- who was booted from last season for lying to producers about his criminal past -- has finally received some closure ... reuniting with his fellow finalists for the first time since he left the show.

Jermaine tells TMZ, he bought tickets to the American Idol LIVE tour on Tuesday at the Wells Fargo Center in Philly -- and his friend Josh Ledet (who finished 3rd last season) hooked him up with backstage passes.

While he was there, Jermaine says he caught up with all his old pals from Season 11 -- Jessica Sanchez, Colton Dixon, Skylar Laine, Erika Van Pelt, Phillip Phillips, DeAndre Brackensick ... the whole gang.

Jermaine says it was an emotional reunion, but everyone was very supportive -- "showing a lot of love," and asking how Jermaine had been doing since he was disqualified in March.

As for whether he regrets lying to producers -- Jermaine tells us, "I think I told them at the time what I needed to for my information to qualify, but overall I just wish of course that I did things differently."

"American Idol" desperately wanted Katy Perry to fill one of its vacant judge's seats, so much so, they offered her $20 MILLION ... but she she still turned it down ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the production tell TMZ ... "Idol" pursued Perry relentlessly for weeks, eager to get her to sign on the dotted line. According to our sources, they started the offer at $18 million, but threw even more cash on the table ... $20 MILLION for a one year contract!!!

We're told Katy made it clear ... she was NOT interested and money wasn't the issue.

Sources tell us ... aside from the fact that Katy's schedule made it impossible to do the show ... she just didn't think it was right career choice for her.

Mariah Carey: "Hello, who's calling Mariah?"
American Idol: Hi, Ms. Carey! Sorry to bother you, but we umm ... well, we want the much younger Nicki Minaj to sit next to you at the judges' tab--((dial tone)) Hello? Hello??

Kanye West is negotiating with producers to become an "American Idol" judge ... TMZ has learned.

Sources close to the production tell TMZ, "Idol" honchos reached out to Kanye recently about filling one of the open judging spots ... and Kanye expressed interest.

But that doesn't mean he's on board -- we're told Yeezy is still unsure about accepting the gig. The way it was put to us ... "He's on the fence," because he's not sure if "A.I." is in his wheelhouse.

And there's another big hang up -- cash. Informed sources tell TMZ ... "Idol" would "at least match Mariah's salary" -- a cool $18 mil a year.

It looks like Nicki Minaj is either close to signing a deal or has signed one to become a judge, but we're told producers may well add a 4th judge. As we reported, the frontrunners are Keith Urban, Brad Paisley and Enrique Iglesias, but Kanye would clearly trump them all.

Nicki Minaj may well become a judge on "American Idol," but it will be at the expense of Mariah Carey, who we're told hung up the phone when she was told Nicki was the top candidate.

Sources connected with "Idol" tell TMZ ... Mariah was led to believe she would be the only woman on the judge's panel. Choosing Nicki would not only crush that expectation, it would add insult to injury because Nicki (29) is a lot younger than Mariah (42).

As for the composition of the judge's panel, we're told by no means is it a done deal. There are 2 scenarios being played out. First, it's unclear if Randy Jackson will come back as a judge or a mentor. If he leaves the judge's panel, there will be another spot to fill.

The second scenario ... we're told some of the honchos believe it's a mistake to have 2 women and a man on the panel, and a 4th male judge would be necessary.

As for who's still in the running, we're told Brad Paisley, Keith Urban and Enrique Iglesias are leading the pack.

If you thought "American Idol" forked over big bucks to land Mariah Carey ... they're going to have to back up a bank truck to Diddy's front door to get him to sign on for next season.

Diddy is the latest superstar rumored to be joining the show since the departure of Steven Tyler and Jennifer Lopez.

We spotted Diddy at JFK yesterday and while he professed his love for "Idol," he gave a very telling answer when asked how much it would cost to get him to sign on the line which is dotted.

Nigel Lythgoe's niece is now England's idol, after winning her second gold medal in the Olympics this morning.

Charlotte Dujardin rode her way to victory in the non-sport of dressage ... a fancy term for horse dancing.

As for the connection between the famed "American Idol" honcho and Charlotte, she's his ex-wife's sister's daughter. Translation -- even though Nigel calls her his niece, it's really his ex-niece.

Nigel tells us, although he hasn't spoken to her in 9 years, he sponsored her for a year in dressage before he got divorced.

Nigel tells TMZ when he found out Charlotte won for a second time this AM, he actually cried.

Hopefully, we'll see Charlotte on Nigel's next show ... "So You Think You Can Horse Dance."

"American Idol" could finally be going to pot this fall -- because spliffmaster rap legend Snoop Dogg says he'd LOVE to fill the last remaining judging spot on the show.

During an interview this week, Snoop -- recently reincarnated as reggae artist Snoop Lion -- reportedly said, "I'll do 'American Idol'"

TMZ broke the story ... Jennifer Lopez' judging spot has been filled by Mariah Carey -- who inked a record $18 MILLION contract for her first year on the show. So far, Steven Tyler's spot is still up for grabs.

"Idol" spokesman Neil Schubert would not comment on whether Snoop was being considered to fill the empty seat.

Yeah dogg.

Mariah Carey just became the HIGHEST PAID JUDGE in reality television ... because her one-year deal with "American Idol" is worth close to $18 MILLION ... this according to sources connected to "Idol."

Carey's deal dwarfs the contract Jennifer Lopez signed when she joined the judge's table -- J.Lo only scored a measly $12 mil for her first year on the show.

Carey also blows past Britney Spears ... who's making $15 million on "X Factor."

Somewhere ... Nick Cannon is smiling.

Just a day or so before being named the newest "American Idol" judge, Mariah Carey was hanging out with some of her biggest competition ... "X Factor" judge L.A. Reid.

Mimi and L.A. were spotted cruising around the Hamptons together this weekend and sources tell us he was key in convincing her to take the "Idol" gig.

Although they are now on rival TV shows, the music heavyweights go way back as Reid used to be the CEO of Mariah's record label.