“American Idol” judge Luke Bryan came to the defense of fellow judge Katy Perry following a season filled with backlash against her for her criticism and comments towards participants on the reality show.
The 46-year-old country singer said he and the other judges get “set up” to fall on their “sword” when they critique contestants as he praised Perry for putting herself out there and “trying to have fun.”
“Katy Perry’s been dealing with stuff like that her whole career,” Bryan told Fox News. “We all get it… I mean, we’re judging kids that people at home fall in love with. So, we’re not gonna bat 1,000 as judges.”
"We're not gonna bat 1,000 as judges," said Bryan, before opening up about his future on the show (via @toofab)https://t.co/1BmVzD06TS
— TMZ (@TMZ) June 14, 2023
“I think we get set up,” he added. “As judges, you know, we kinda fall on the sword a lot of times. And get set up to where people can get very vocal on socials and stuff. My thing is, I think when me and Lionel [Richie] and Katy sit down at the desk, in our hearts, we’re doing the best we can.”
“Katy gets picked on for going out and trying to have fun making a TV show,” the country singer continued. “You can’t be so safe in the moment that you’re so homogenized, you can’t ever go for a joke. Or go for a fun moment. Sometimes you just gotta say stuff. … It may be my year next year. … It makes me appreciate her even more, just how big of a scale she’s had to deal with that her whole career.”
The comments came after the audience loudly booed the “Fireworks” singer after she criticized contestant Nutsa Buzaladze’s attire during the show.
It came after Buzaladze took to the stage and gave a widely praised performance of Grace Potter and the Nocturnals’ “Paris (Ooh La La).” She wore a silver mini dress and sparkling high-heeled boots as she danced and rocked the stage.
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When it came to Perry’s turn to comment, she said, “Nutsa, every time you take the stage, it’s like you glitter bomb the stage. Listen, I think that one thing I personally would like to see from you is not one piece of glitter the next time. I know that’s gonna be hard.”
In response, the audience started booing.
During another episode, Perry was accused of “mom-shaming” contestant Sara Beth Liebe, a mother of three. Some fans said Perry was rude to Liebe after the contestant revealed her singing experience was basically the “church choir.”
“Is this your dream?” Perry asked Liebe, who appeared rattled and simply replied, “Um.”
“If it’s not your dream, you might need to leave because there’s a lot of dreams behind you,” Perry added.
Liebe eventually did walk away from the show to return to her family.