Steven Tyler Leaves Idol
The Aerosmith frontman has been a judge on the show for the past two seasons.
“After some long…hard…thoughts…I’ve decided it’s time for me to let go of my mistress ‘American Idol’ before she boils my rabbit,” said Tyler in a statement. “I strayed from my first love, Aerosmith, and I’m back – but instead of begging on my hands and knees, I’ve got two fists in the air and I’m kicking the door open with my band.”
He described his “Idol” stint as “over-the-top fun, and I loved every minute of it.”
The show’s creator, Simon Fuller, said in a statement, “The fact that this became a reality and we had the pleasure of [Tyler] gracing our stage for two seasons makes me very proud.”
Fuller added, “I completely understand his desire to get back to his life as the singer in America’s greatest-ever rock band. ‘American Idol’ will miss him!”
Jennifer Lopez has officially quit ‘American Idol’ a day after rocker Steven Tyler announced he was stepping down as a judge on the show.
After weeks of speculation about the pop superstar's future on the TV talent series, Lopez phoned in to Idol host Ryan Seacrest's Los Angeles radio show on Friday to declare she would not be back for a third season of the show.
The On The Floor singer gave U.S. breakfast show Today a taste of what was to come on Thursday when she said, "I am thinking that maybe it's time for me to go and do other things that I really love to do," during an interview - and she made the news official a day later.
She told Seacrest, "It's just been a really long thought process ... and I really have been torn ... When I signed on to Idol I signed on for one year and I wound up doing two years because I just fell so in love with the show, everybody there... and I didn't know I'd be so moved emotionally by working on the show... It was such a lovely surprise in my life to do it.
“Something has to give ... I really was dreading this phone call ... and you're gonna make me cry. I honestly feel the time has come that I have to get back to doing the other things that I do that I have kinda put on hold because I love Idol so much... I could keep just doing Idol for the rest of my life but that would be giving up a bunch of other things... We had an amazing run.”