Old guard, meet the new DioGuardi
Scooching in between Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson sounds intimidating, if not a little scary.
But Kara DioGuardi, the new fourth judge on “American Idol,” is confident she’ll find her niche in the bickering panel where the line between love and hate is blurred with every critique.
“I’m just gonna speak to Simon the way I speak to everybody,” DioGuardi says of the acerbic Cowell. “I’m just gonna have my opinion, be honest and I don’t foresee any problems.
“It’s really flattering too, you know, to think that (‘Idol’) even thought about me,” she adds. “I mean, when I got the call, I thought they were calling the wrong person. So I’m the new kid on the block, and I’m hoping everyone’s gonna go easy on me – and that I bring a lot to the table.”
The Grammy-nominated songwriter will make her debut when the eighth season of “Idol” premieres in January.
It’s not yet clear how ties will be broken during the audition process; in past seasons, two out of three judges had to agree to advance aspiring pop stars to the Hollywood round.
And something will have to give during the telecast that barely has enough time to fit in three judges’ opinions.
DioGuardi, the youngest “Idol” judge at 37, says she leads a “low-key” life.
“I’m maybe not a household name, but people know of me in the industry,” says DioGuardi, who co-owns the Los-Angeles based company Arthouse Entertainment.
It’s producing music by David Archuleta, who was the seventh-season “Idol” runner-up in May.
Her songs have been recorded by Kelly Clarkson, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, Celine Dion, Faith Hill, Carrie Underwood and Pink, among others.
In 2000, DioGuardi and longtime friend Abdul co-wrote the dance tune “Spinning Around” for Aussie pop star Kylie Minogue.
Her TV experience includes appearing a judge on the short-lived ABC reality series “The One: Making a Music Star” in 2006.
DioGuardi began her “Idol” journey Tuesday during auditions in New York.
“We had a picnic last night,” Cowell quipped of her arrival. “I wore jammies and the girls wore negligees and we kind of broke the ice. We had cake until 2 in the morning.”
DioGuardi says she wants to help contestants succeed, but she will be harsh when need be.
“I’d say I’m honest,” she says. “I’d say I believe in what I believe in, and I’m willing to fight for it. And I’m pretty feisty.”
As an “Idol” viewer, she says she’s disagreed with each judge at some point – although admits that Cowell’s criticism is generally “spot on.”
She hopes to find the The Next Big Thing.
“What makes an artist is somebody who’s unique,” DioGuardi says. “That when their song comes on the radio, I know exactly who it is. … It’s not about vocal acrobatics.”
The birthday bunch
Singer Van Morrison is 63. Actor Richard Gere is 59. Singer Deborah Gibson is 38. Actor Zack Ward (“A Christmas Story,” “Titus”) is 38. Actor Chris Tucker (“Rush Hour”) is 36. Actress Sara Ramirez (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 33.