American Idol going country with Brad Paisley?

Who’s going to be joining Mariah Carey on the judging panel at American Idol?

We still don’t know what’s going to happen to Randy Jackson. Initially it was said that Randy would take on more of a mentor role but he may have get to stay in the judges’ chair after getting Mariah to join to show.

Lots of other names have been thrown around to possibly join the show, like Fergie and Katy Perry. But there’s a country star that is a big contender… and he’s had ties to the shows for awhile.

American Idol wants to mimic The Voice by bringing a country star on board. They are considering bringing on Brad Paisley. He has a past with some of the winners.. He recorded a duet with Carrie Underwood and Scotty McCreery joined him on tour. Idol has had a few more notable country artists too, like Kellie Pickler, Lauren Alaina and Josh Gracin.

No word on if Brad has even been contacted yet or if he would even be willing to do it.

But even if Randy, Brad and Mariah are all on board, there may be one more spot open. Rumor is they are going to change back to four judges this season just like the other competition shows. Both The Voice and X-Factor  have four judges and Idol has tried this format before.. They think that they need more star power to save the ratings, so a 4th celebrity judge could make a big difference.