Randy Jackson will be leaving the American Idol judge’s table and into a mentor role even though the higher-ups don’t think that’s something he’d be good at. TMZ says they’re keeping him around because they need him to hold the show together.

As for who’ll be replacing him, Nicki Minaj’s deal, while not a complete lock, is nearly done. However, there is still the issue of Mariah Carey throwing a hissy fit because there’s a bigger female star than her at the table. But the producers are banking on that because they think conflict and tension is good for the show. Since it is. People eat that stuff up.

AI still hasn’t found their fourth judge yet though. It’s assumed it’ll be someone from the country music world. Hopefully someone not named Taylor Swift. The only thing more annoying than Mariah Carey talking about her Hello Kitty! dolls and Nicki Minaj pretending to have multiple personality disorder is Taylor Swift somehow tying every audition into a story about one of her failed relationships.