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American Idol season 9 has announced its panel of judges, and confirmed that it will be retaining last year’s panel of Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Ritchie. The iconic reality series originally aired on the Fox network from 2002 to 2016. The ongoing ABC series is a revival show that first premiered in March 2018.
Ryan Seacrest is also set to return as the host of American Idol season 9, continuing his streak of being the presenter of all seasons of the show thus far. Read on to learn more about the net worth and career profiles of the American Idol judges.
Carrie Underwood’s Net Worth Is $120 Million
Celebrity Net Worth pegs Carrie Underwood’s financial worth at $120 million. The iconic country singer is an alumnus of American Idol herself, with her originally appearing as a contestant in the fourth season of the Fox version of the show in 2005. Carrie won that season, following which she released her debut single Inside Your Heaven in 2005.
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Carrie’s debut album, Some Hearts, holds the record for the best-selling solo debut album released by a female artist in country music history. It’s also the best-selling country debut album of all time, per Nielsen SoundScan, and the best-selling country album of the last 17 years. Overall, the album has sold 7 million copies. According to The U.S. Sun, Carrie makes around $12 million a year as a judge on American Idol.
Underwood has also made considerable money through real estate investments, purchasing an eleven-acre mansion in Ottawa, Canada, with her husband, which she sold for an asking price of $2.2 million. In 2020, she sold her 7,000 sq ft home in Brentwood, Tennessee, for $1.41 million. Carrie and her husband currently own a $2.9 million 400-acre estate in Franklin, Tennessee.
Underwood has also made a lot of money from her endorsement deals with brands such as Target, Nintendo, Olay, Hershey’s, and Dick’s Sporting Goods. In collaboration with Dick’s Sporting Goods, she released a fitness clothing brand called CALIA by Carrie Underwood in 2015.
Luke Bryan’s Net Worth Is $160 Million
According to Celebrity Net Worth, Luke Bryan’s net worth is $160 million. The country music artist began his career as a songwriter in 2001 after moving to Nashville, Tennessee. He eventually began performing his own music, with his debut album I’ll Stay Me released in 2007, and his sophomore effort, 2009’s Doin’ My Thing, catapulting him into stardom.
Luke Bryan has consistently earned millions of dollars throughout his music career, with him earning $43 million between June 2018 and June 2019, and $45 million between June 2019 and June 2020. His tours often net him $1 million per show. He’s also paid $12 million per year as a judge on American Idol. Bryan also has a business venture as the co-owner of Buck Commander, which sells deer hunting gear. Buck Commander was featured in a TV show on the Outdoor Channel.
In 2013, Luke Bryan bought an oceanfront mansion in Florida for $2.5 million, which he would later sell for $12.95 million in 2024.
Lionel Richie’s Net Worth Is $200 Million
Per Celebrity Net Worth, Lionel Richie is valued at $200 million. A funk and R&B artist, Lionel has had a storied music career going all the way back to the 1970s. Lionel first debuted as a vocalist in The Commodores, a band signed to Motown.
Lionel then transitioned into a solo career and became a household name with the chart-topping hit Truly, released from his debut album. Richie consolidated his stardom with his second album, Can’t Slow Down, which became well known for iconic hits such as Hello, Stuck on You, and Penny Lover. Can’t Slow Down also won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
Lionel makes $10 million a year as a judge on American Idol.
Aside from his musical career, Lionel has a sprawling mansion in Beverly Hills, California, that he purchased in 1999 for $6 million, which is estimated to have a valuation of $40-60 million in the present day. His property is rented to golfers when the golfing US Open is in session, with the rent reportedly being as high as $1 million a week or $10 million a month in 2023.
Ryan Seacrest’s Net Worth Is $500 Million
According to Celebrity Net Worth, American Idol host Ryan Seacrest is worth half a billion dollars. Ryan started out his career as a radio DJ and television host, presenting shows such as Gladiators 2000 and Wild Animal Games before finally getting his big break upon hosting the first season of American Idol in 2002.
Since then, Seacrest has consistently hosted every single season of the massively successful reality series, which has become a pop culture phenomenon that continues to go from strength to strength.
Ryan Seacrest reportedly makes $60-80 million every year from his ventures in the entertainment industry. In 2009, he negotiated a massive pay hike for hosting American Idol, with a three-year $45 million deal, making him the highest-paid television presenter at the time. His current multi-year contract for hosting the ABC revival of the show is reportedly worth $10 million.
Ryan Seacrest also earns $10 million per year since taking over hosting duties for The Wheel of Fortune in 2024. Ryan Seacrest also has an extensive career as a producer through the Ryan Seacrest Productions company, whose portfolio includes hits such as Keeping Up with the Kardashians and Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution.
Seacrest is also the owner of the Ryan Seacrest Distinction menswear collection and the skincare brand Polished.
In 2011, Ryan purchased a Beverly Hills property from Ellen DeGeneres for $36.5 million, which he eventually sold for $51 million in 2022. Ryan also owns a townhouse in Manhattan that reportedly rents for $75,000 a month, and a $14 million property in Napa that he eventually listed for $22 million in 2024.
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