Paula
Abdul Makes Idol Blunder
4/30/08
American Idol judge Paula Abdul was left red-faced after making an
embarrassing blunder on the hit reality TV show.
The singer was flummoxed after the series' producers changed the
judging format from the usual pattern of appraising each contest after
they had sung to waiting until all five had performed.
When asked to appraise first performer Jason Castro, Abdul gave her
opinions on two performances - even though each singer had only sung once.
She told contestant Jason Castro, "Oh gosh, we've never had to
write these things down ... fast enough. Jason, first song, I loved
hearing your lower register, which we never really hear, um ... .
"The second song, I felt like your usual charm wasn't - it was
missing for me. It kind of left me a little empty. The two songs made me
feel like you're not fighting hard enough to get into the top four."
The audience launched into nervous laughter, before fellow judge Randy
Jackson reminded Abdul each performer had only sung once, telling her,
"That was just on the first song. Just on the first one."
She responded, "Oh my god, I thought you - I thought you sang
twice!" before explaining she had got mixed up with her notes for the
next performer, David Cook.
Abdul later blamed American Idol producers for her mix up, telling TV
show Entertainment Tonight she has been "in the dark" over the
change in format.
Fellow judge Simon Cowell also admitted the switch had been difficult,
saying, "This was officially the strangest show we've ever done but I
like that. It's kind of a bit chaotic tonight."