'American Idol' adds fourth judge

Songwriter Kara DioGuardi to join panel

By STUART LEVINE

Randy, Paula and Simon will be making room at the judges table.

Fox announced Monday that songwriter Kara DioGuardi will become a fourth judge on ``American Idol,'' which is in the midst of auditions around the country as it prepares for its eighth season. The show will return to the air in January.

DioGuardi has had her material sung by dozens of artists, including Celine Dion, Avril Lavigne, Faith Hill and Kylie Minogue. She's also collaborated with former ``Idol'' contestants such as Kelly Clarkson, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks and Katharine McPhee.

Since its launch in 2002, ``Idol'' has had the same three judges - Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson - but the addition of DioGuardi brings the show more in tune with some of its global formats.

In the U.K., the original ``Pop Idol'' had four judges: Cowell; record producer Pete Waterman; Nicki Chapman, a music publicist; and Neil Fox, a Capital Radio DJ.

``We had originally intended for `American Idol' to have four judges,'' said exec producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz. ``We've seen from our international series that having a fourth judge creates a dynamic that benefits both the contestants and the viewers.''

The addition of DioGuardi comes just after ``Idol'' exec producer Nigel Lythgoe left the show (Daily Variety, Aug. 4), but it is difficult to correlate a connection between the two moves.

DioGuardi will join the ``Idol'' team in New York today, as auditions continue. She said she didn't openly court producers for the job and was asked to have a meeting a few days ago with a member of the ``Idol'' team to discuss the possibility of joining the show. A few days later, she received a call saying she was aboard.

Asked her philosophy and criteria when evaluating musical talent, DioGuardi said, ``I don't think I can provide more insight; just a different opinion. I'll be a straight shooter and say it like I see it. ... For me, what makes a great artist is when I'm driving in my car and when their song comes on the radio, I know exactly who it is. It's not about vocal acrobatics but being unique and doing things that are identifiable to you.''

She added: ``It's really flattering they thought about me. I hope everyone will be easy on me.''

The move will shake up the longtime structure of the show. While the series remains a Nielsen powerhouse, some critics have said that the past few seasons had become creatively stagnant. ``Idol,'' exec produced by Simon Fuller of 19 Entertainment and Ken Warwick and Frot-Coutaz of FremantleMedia North America, saw ratings slippage for most of last season but had a strong comeback in the final week when David Cook was named the winner.

How exactly DioGuardi's addition will change the format of the show - such as where she will sit or in what order the four judges will deliver their comments - hasn't been determined.

DioGuardi, who is a senior VP of A&R at Warner Bros. Records and co-owns Arthouse Entertainment, won a pop songwriter of the year award in 2007. She recently signed Jason Reeves, Laze & Royal, Atozzio and David Hodges.

In 2000, she and Abdul co-wrote ``Spinning Around'' for Minogue. It became a No. 1 hit in the U.K.