In Lionel Richie’s eyes, Carrie Underwood learned a valuable lesson during her first year as an American Idol judge.
“I think for her, the toughest part was saying ‘No.’ It took her about halfway through her first season,” Richie, 76, exclusively told Us Weekly during an episode of the show’s Taylor Swift night on Monday, April 27. “And I get it, we’re here to not tear them down, but to encourage. But at the same time, not to lie to them. It’s a great balancing act.”
He continued, “I think once she got past that … they’re already slightly broken when they come to us. So they sometimes need mom, dad and the cousin and the uncle before they need somebody with an authoritative scare, you to death. So I think that’s what we bring together. And Carrie is just a sweetheart. I love her.”
After Underwood, 43, got her start by winning season 4 of the reality show in 2005, she returned to the series in season 23 as a judge alongside Richie and Luke Bryan — and has given them glimpses of her early days.
“I remember the first year, she kept saying, ‘Oh, my God. This is what it’s like,’” Richie recalled. “And then she said, ‘Did they talk about me like we’re talking about them when the cameras go off?’ And we said, ‘Yeah,’ because we have a little sidelines as far as little opinions before the camera comes back on.”
For Richie, working alongside Underwood and Bryan, 49, has been a “magical” experience.
“What I always say is, what makes the business hard, is the grind. What makes the business easy? People with personalities. Luke is all by himself. Carrie is just a mom with a musical degree. It’s so much fun. You don’t have to think about it. They know what the stage is,” Richie explained. “Carrie’s bringing a dynamic that Luke and I don’t know anything about called, ‘She’s been here before.’ She knows the pressure [and] the anxiety.”
Richie quipped that he and Bryan would “never go near this thing,” adding, “Are you kidding me? This is too overwhelming, but the three of us together, we just make the dynamic three-oh [or] trio. That’s the same thing. But I love them, because it’s what we say on camera, and it’s fun listening to what they say off camera. Because with both cases, with Luke, we don’t know what he’s gonna say, but it’s fun.”
Now, in season 24, American Idol narrowed its contestants down to five: Chris Tungseth, Hannah Harper, Braden Rumfelt, Keyla Richardson and Jordan McCullough. The group is set to perform in the semi-finals on Monday, May 4, before the top three contestants take the stage for the May 11 finale.
For McCullough, having input from all of the judges — especially Underwood, who has “been in [their] shoes” — “truly means a lot.” Tungseth, meanwhile, noted that Underwood is “so funny” and “so sweet,” adding that she’s “a real person who’s mega famous, but a real human.”
“I think she knows what we’re doing. She’s been here. She’s lived it so she can relate to us in that way. And she always has an encouraging word, even if it does push us to be better or challenge us in a way,” Harper told Us of Underwood.
Richardson added, “Being an upcoming artist, she knows how it is, like Hannah said, just growing into being an artist and becoming comfortable, she knows exactly how that is. So when she gives us compliments or [tells] us something, I take it in because she knows how it is. I really respect that.”
American Idol airs on ABC Mondays at 8 p.m. ET.
