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ABC “American Idol” judges Lionel Richie, Katy Perry, Luke Bryan
Multiple fan-favorite former “American Idol” contestants will be returning to the show’s 20th season as guest mentors for the Hollywood Week contestants.
In the middle of the finale of “The Bachelor,” ABC aired a promotion for season 20 of “American Idol,” and the promotion showed off some of the alumni that are set to return for the next round of the competition.
In the clip, season 7 winner David Cook, season 6 winner Jordin Sparks, season 2 winner Ruben Studdard and season 10 runner-up Lauren Alaina surprise contestants who look up to them.
“For the first time,” long-time host Ryan Seacrest can be heard saying in the video. “We’re bringing back some of ‘Idol’s’ biggest stars to guide the way!”
All of the guest mentors shown in the clip come from the Fox-era of the show before it was picked up by ABC.
Hollywood Week Begins Airing Soon
The audition episodes of “American Idol” have nearly finished airing, with just two episodes left at the time of writing. They will air on Sunday, March 20 and Monday, March 21. Then, the show will pick up with Hollywood Week on Sunday, March 27.
The first round of Hollywood Week is the genre challenge, where the judges will assign a genre to each artist. Then, on Monday, March 28, 2022, the show will air the Hollywood Duets Challenge round of Hollywood Week.
Once Hollywood Week has been completed, the show will air the Showcase Round, which was filmed in Hawaii. Following that round, “American Idol” will move on to live shows for the season leading up to the finale.
Here’s what the schedule looks like so far:
- Sunday, March 20: Auditions 4
- Monday, March 21: Auditions 5
- Sunday, March 27: No show, ABC airs the Academy Awards
- Monday, March 28: Hollywood Week Genre Challenge
- Sunday, April 3: Hollywood Week Duets Challenge
The show will continue airing two nights a week through the season finale, which is currently set to take place on May 22, 2022.
More Mentors Will Appear for the Showcase Round
There will be a rotating slate of guest mentors throughout the season of “American Idol” now that Bobby Bones is no longer the in-house mentor.
Bones announced that he was leaving the show in January 2022.
“Some of you noticed I’m not in the ‘Idol’ promos this season,” Bones shared in a now-expired Instagram Story. “My contract [with] my new network won’t let me do another show right now. Love ‘Idol,’ btw. Was a great four years.”
Jimmie Allen posted that he’s joining “American Idol” on his Instagram account alongside a video with Minnie Mouse.
“Hey y’all, Jimmie Allen here. I’ll be a guest mentor on @americanidol for the iconic 20th season! Tune in and catch me at @disneyaulani. Hope y’all are as pumped as I am for this year’s talent,” Allen wrote in the announcement.
Bebe Rexha also announced her involvement.
“Excited to announce that I’ll be a guest mentor on @americanidol for the iconic 20th season!” she wrote in the post.
It was first reported by the account Idol Spoilers, which has consistently posted accurate information about “American Idol” seasons, both Rexha and Allen will serve as mentors for the top 24 contestants on season 20 of “American Idol.”
The mentors will likely speak with each of the contestants before they get up on stage to perform during the round of the top 24, which is the round that comes directly before the beginning of live shows each season.
“American Idol” airs on Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. Eastern and Pacific on ABC.
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Source: Heavy
