Season 9 of American Idol kicks off tomorrow night and soon we’ll get to see new judge Ellen Degeneres. But during the early audition weeks, we’ll have some guest judges filling in for Paula Abdul.
Tonight, Victoria Beckham joins Randy Jackson, Kara DioGuardi and Simon Cowell in Boston, MA; tomorrow Mary J. Blige is the celebrity guest judge.
Despite the one or two Christians who’ve commented that they won’t watch this season because Ellen DeGeneres is gay, I think she’s the perfect choice to replace Abdul.

1) Ellen is already a strong supporter of music artists. She’s showcased up and coming artists on her talk show and she’s always sharing her new finds.
2) Ellen is encouraging and positive, and is able to share feedback without being mean-spirited. She’s funny and likeable; in fact, I think we should keep Ellen and get rid of Kara.
3) With Ellen replacing Paula, we won’t have to watch any more Paula/Simon under-the-table-hanky-panky and sexual innuendo. Barf.
I doubt very much that Ellen’s sexual orientation will have any more effect on the show than the Christian contestants have in the past. Idol has always been replete with an entire spectrum of musical genres and artists, from Barry Manilow to Lady Gaga to Dolly Parton.
And it shouldn’t. This is a show about singing and music, not politics or religion.
So bring on Season 9 of American Idol! And join me here tomorrow night for the Boston auditions. I’ll be blogging live!
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