Katy Perry will not be the one that got away.
The polarizing pop star will be resuming her role as an “American Idol” judge alongside fellow returning panelists Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie for Season 22.
ABC announced the news Tuesday, noting that Ryan Seacrest will also be coming back to host the longstanding singing competition when auditions begin in August.
Though the “Teenage Dream” singer came under fire multiple times during Season 21 for comments she made to a few of the show’s hopefuls, an insider previously told Pvnew that she wasn’t “fazed by the backlash.”
Our source insisted that Perry was “just doing her job,” and although she “has a unique sense of humor that may not always translate well on camera,” we were told that “she never has any ill intent.”
In fact, our informant described the Grammy nominee as “a mentor and a friend to the contestants.”
However, not every contestant would agree.
Earlier this year, Perry, 38, was accused of “mom-shaming” Sara Beth Liebe by joking that the 25-year-old mother of three had been “laying on the table too much.”
Liebe blasted the “Firework” songstress’ “hurtful” remark in a TikTok video after her audition aired in March, adding, “I think that it’s hard enough to be a mom, and it’s hard enough to be a woman.”
The young mom subsequently dropped out of the competition to “get home to [her] babies.”
Perry then caught flack in April for criticizing Nutsa Buzaladze’s glittery costume, saying, “Nutsa, every time you take the stage, it’s like you glitter bomb the stage. Listen, one thing that I would like to see from you is not one piece of glitter the next time. I know that is going to be hard.”
Later in the season, the “Roar” vocalist was accused of being “dismissive” of Wé Ani after he survived a round of eliminations but her favorite contestant, Elijah McCormick, did not.
Still, many fans have rushed to Perry’s defense, arguing that her commentary pales in comparison to original “Idol” judge Simon Cowell’s notoriously harsh insults.
Some of her colleagues have had her back, too.
“Katy gets picked on for going out and trying to have fun making a TV show,” fellow judge Bryan said at the Country Music Association Fest last month.
“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.”
