The judging panel for the last three seasons on Fox consisted of singers Keith Urban, Jennifer Lopez, and Harry Connick Jr. The original judges, for seasons one through eight, were record producer and music manager Randy Jackson, singer and choreographer Paula Abdul, and music executive and manager Simon Cowell.

The winners of the first twenty seasons, as chosen by viewers, are Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Scotty McCreery, Phillip Phillips, Candice Glover, Caleb Johnson, Nick Fradiani, Trent Harmon, Maddie Poppe, Laine Hardy, Just Sam, Chayce Beckham, and Noah Thompson.Īmerican Idol employs a panel of vocal judges who critique the contestants' performances. The concept of the series involves discovering recording stars from unsigned singing talents, with the winner determined by American viewers using phones, Internet, and SMS text voting. It started as an addition to the Idols format that was based on Pop Idol from British television, and became one of the most successful shows in the history of American television. It was on hiatus for two years until March 11, 2018, when a revival of the series began airing on ABC. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to April 7, 2016, for 15 seasons. American Idol is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America.

Six Weeks by Jessica L. Degarmo