Since Paula Abdul left “American Idol,” the show has used fill-in judges like Victoria Beckham and Mary J. Blidge in the interim. With the new season coming up, the producers have found a permanent replacement, and you may have heard of her. Ellen DeGeneres will take Paula Abdul’s place as the fourth judge when the show’s ninth season premiers next year.

Hopefully, I’m the people’s point of view because I’m just like you,” DeGeneres said on her syndicated talk show Thursday. “I sit at home and I watch it, and I don’t have that technical … I’m not looking at it in a critical way from the producer’s mind. I’m looking at it as a person who is going to buy the music and is going to relate to that person.”

DeGeneres’ hiring as the show’s fourth judge all but seals the departure of Abdul, the original third judge who announced she was quitting amid a contract dispute in July.
Abdul had served as judge alongside Cowell and Jackson since the show’s debut in 2002. Producers shook up the franchise last season by adding songwriter DioGuardi as a fourth judge.

“American Idol” has been our country’s most popular show for some time now. That being said, it’s impossible to escape the news of who’s won, who’s feuding, etc. If I remember correctly, I did watch the entire first season. In theory, the show’s premise is a great. The American public isn’t voting on which contestant is the best songwriter or musician, but who is the most talented singer. These winners aren’t going to go on to compose great music, but will merely be the voice heard over songs written by professional songwriters working for a specific label. This isn’t a new idea at all — it’s existed since the days of Motown.

Nevertheless, Ellen DeGeneres is a perfect fit. The people watching don’t care, or really understand, what justification Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Kara DioGuardi are using to make their critiques. They certainly have more musical experience and knowledge then Ellen DeGeneres, but are people tuning in because of the pure musicality of the show? No, they’re tuning because they want entertainment, and that’s what DeGeneres brings to the table.

Watching all the Beatles content on VH1 has just further enhanced the fact that today’s popular music is generally horrible. Even the weaker bands that existed in their day were better than the stuff currently topping the charts. I was having a conversation with a friend about this last night. The Beatles were the first time the public and music purists got it right on such a large scale. Everybody agreed and reaped the benefits. Now, while Kelly Clarkson and Daughtry have hit singles, musical nerds like myself have to dig and dig to find new musicians worth our time. More often than not, I get too frustrated, and simply put Abbey Road on my record player.