After Jelly Roll served as one of the mentors for the American Idol season 22 Top 24 Hawaii round, Katy Perry said that she thought he’d be the perfect person to take her place, but now she’s changed her mind about the country superstar.

Katy exited the show after the American Idol season 22 finale, during which Abi Carter was crowned the winner. She’s been a judge alongside Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan ever since ABC revived American Idol in 2018.

“That would be too many men. Let’s be honest.”

In an interview with E! News, Katy revealed why she changed her mind about Jelly Rolltaking her placeas a judge on American Idol. Katy explained, “That would be too many men. Let’s be honest.” However, she isn’t ruling out Jelly Roll joining the judging panel when the time is right. She added, “But we love Jelly Roll, and I’d love for him to be on this show whenever it’s appropriate.”

Katy said that she wants her American Idol replacement to be someone who’s “honest and bold, not scared of negative comments,’cause it happens. When you have an opinion, when you’re bold, when you’re a female, it just happens.”

Although many celebrities, including Taylor Swift, Miley Cyrus, Meghan Trainor, Jon Bon Jovi, Kelly Clarkson, and Fantasia Barrino have been suggested as replacements for Katy, the best choice might be former American Idol judge Jennifer Lopez. Not only does she meet Katy’s criteria, but she did a fantastic job with the role during her original tenure on the show.

Katy is right that the American Idol panel shouldn’t be made up of three men because it would be unprecedented for the show and would create an imbalance.

Katy is a strong woman who is a beautiful role model for women, and her replacement should bring that same energy to American Idol. Although Katy didn’t mention it, it would also be excessive to have two country music artists as judges if Jelly Roll joined the show.

Luke already represents the genre at the American Idol judging table, so it would make sense to choose someone from a different type of music. A female pop star who’s reminiscent of Katy would be the show’s best bet.

American Idol won’t be the same without the iconic Katy, but the show must go on. It’s happened in the past when original judges Paula Abdul, Simon Cowell, and Randy Jackson exited their roles at various points during American Idol‘s original run on FOX, and the show continued to be successful.

It’s important that the judges have camaraderie, but Lionel and Luke seem very easy to get along with, so whoever is chosen should fit right in. Katy will be greatly missed, but it’ll be thrilling to see who takes her place as the next American Idol judge.