American Idol

William Hung doesn't think Jennifer Hudson and Kelly Clarkson betrayed "American Idol" by joining its arch rival, "The Voice" ... and even has a (long shot) plan B for producers.

Hung, who's a professional public speaker now, tells us he doesn't begrudge J-Hud and Kelly's decision to jump ship because it's been so long since they were 'Idol' contestants. Even though they, along with Hung, appeared on the big series finale last year on FOX.

It's been 13 years since his horrific rendition of "She Bangs" was banging around your head nonstop -- but Hung still has a big dream ... where 'Idol' is concerned.

Steven Tyler is serious about putting the band together again -- not Aerosmith, but his fellow judges J Lo and Randy Jackson ... for the "American Idol" reboot.

Thing is though ... Steven's got a lot of demands. He was at LAX Friday when he sent a message to 'AI' producers about how to take down "The Voice."

Steven believes he knows the winning formula, but something doesn't add up. We talked salary with him, and he's got a number in mind. Hint: he's looking at you, Jennifer!

"American Idol" and "The Voice" are locked in an arms war over which superstars will judge and coach on the shows ... and now 'Idol' is stepping up its game after taking 2 big Ls.

A source familiar with negotiations between 'Idol' and Kelly Clarkson -- on the 'Idol' side -- told us they won't be fooled again. As we reported ... Kelly signed with the NBC hit, after 'Idol' balked at her salary demands.

We're told 'AI' plans to keep its wish list of judges under lock and key from here on out. They think they became sitting ducks the second Kelly and Jennifer Hudson's names got out.

One Idol source said, in their opinion, "The Voice" went "into overdrive to lock down" both singers as soon as they got wind the revamped 'Idol' wanted them.

Kelly Clarkson just turned things around quicker than 'The Voice' coach chairs -- instead of judging on the new "American Idol" ... she's joining NBC's hit singing competition.

Kelly made the announcement by video chatting with Blake Shelton on his Facebook page. The superstar singers joked they'd been trying to put the deal together for years, but Kelly kept getting pregnant. She's already been a mentor on the show multiple times.

The timing doesn't seem like a coincidence -- TMZ broke the story, 'Idol' producers wanted Clarkson to be a judge when the show returns on ABC in March 2018. Our sources say negotiations were underway, but the sides couldn't agree on money.

We're told Kelly's ask was just beyond their budget. Instead, she's now landed at "The Voice" for season 14 ... which, by the way, will be running at the same time Idol returns.

Remember, astronomical salaries for judges are mainly what ended the show's run on FOX. As a result, we're told ABC's mindful of overspending.

Another 'Idol' alum, Jennifer Hudson, signed on this week for 'Voice' season 13.

Kelly Clarkson is shaping up to be ABC's first choice for judge on "American Idol" -- she's already clearing her schedule to start filming for auditions ... TMZ has learned.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... ABC has expressed "serious interest" in Clarkson, who won Season 1 of the OG show.

On Kelly's side, we're told she's not only interested, but people on her team are already looking to clear her schedule during the time the show will be filmed.

TMZ broke the story ... home base for the audition shows will be Disney World and possibly Disneyland, which will make it much easier to shoot than the OG where cast and crew went from city to city. It will also be way less expensive, which is a big consideration.

It's also unclear whether the show will air once or twice a week. We've heard ABC is considering a once a week format where results from voting will go down the following week. That will make it easier for the judges and the host, who will almost certainly be Ryan Seacrest.

ABC ... you just snagged "American Idol." So, where you goin' for auditions? We're goin' to Disney World!!!

Yep, TMZ has learned the show will shoot audition weeks at Walt Disney World in Orlando. We're told there are 2 reasons:

-- It promotes a huge brand within the Disney company -- amusement parks.

-- It's way more cost-effective than travelling the show to various cities.

A source familiar with the deal tells us there's also talk of doing some of the auditions at Disneyland on the West Coast.

It would also give the show a cross-section of America and beyond, without having to hit the road.

Money is definitely an issue. The show got too expensive to produce, which is why it went off the air a year ago, and this will save a considerable sum.

Ryan Seacrest sounds like he's game for round two of "American Idol."

TMZ broke the story..."Idol" is coming back in March, 2018 on ABC. We got Ryan and GF Shayna in NYC Saturday night and he certainly didn't shut down the possibility of hosting the show again.

As we reported ... the new gig has almost super-human strings attached, requiring him to fly coast to coast twice in two days in the middle of the night each week to pull it off. Ryan seems to think he's up to the task... with an L.A. Fitness membership.

BTW... we got him going in to Le Bernardin restaurant in NYC. It's super expensive, so we're guessing he's banking on "A.I." money to pay the check.

"American Idol" seems headed for ABC for a March 2018 launch ... sources connected with the negotiations tell TMZ.

TMZ broke the story, ABC made the offer a week ago and asked the owners of the show if it could be moved to NYC so Ryan Seacrest could host, now that he's living there. That idea was quickly nixed and the show will go on in Hollywood.

ABC tells us ... there's no signed deal, but our sources say the negotiations are far along and the fine points are being worked out right now. We're told both sides expect to seal the deal "soon."

We're also told NBC, which made an offer several months ago, is out as a bidder. FOX also made an offer but from everything we're hearing, it's now all about ABC.

Our sources say the plan is for ABC to announce the return of 'Idol' at the Upfronts a week from next.

"American Idol" has only been off the air a year, but seems it's still the hottest property out there, because we've learned ABC has now made an offer to buy the show.

Sources at ABC and Fremantle -- the company that produces the show -- tell TMZ the network contacted Fremantle last week and made the bid. We're told the network wanted to reboot the show for a March 2018 premiere.

We're also told ABC inquired about making Ryan Seacrest the host, but even last week the network knew it was on the verge of signing Ryan as co-host of 'Live' with Kelly Ripa. As a result, we're told ABC asked if the show could be shot in New York, which is now Ryan's home base. Our sources say Fremantle made it clear ... NYC was a no-go. The show will be shot in L.A.

We're told Ryan hasn't been approached by ABC about hosting the show and our ABC sources say it's virtually out of the question, given his commitment to 'Live.'

TMZ broke the story ... NBC and FOX were in a bidding war a few months ago to get the show, but Fremantle stopped negotiating because of squabbling with CORE, co-owner of 'A.I.'

Our sources say Fremantle is going back to CORE to see if they can agree to negotiate with ABC, and go back to NBC and FOX.

Randy Jackson's totally down for getting the "American Idol" band back together ... if someone else takes the lead and makes it happen.

We got Randy at LAX ... he repeatedly confirms with our guy he's in for a reboot, but suggests one of the other former stars of the show is the linchpin.

NBC and FOX are going full bore against each other to bring "American Idol" back.

We're told both networks have submitted bids to FremantleMedia -- which owns the show -- and a decision could come as early as this week.

Multiple sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... NBC wants the show in part to resolve a problem with "The Voice." We're told the network doesn't want to oversaturate the market with the show, which airs twice a year. We're also told Adam Levine only wants to do 1 cycle a year.

If NBC gets 'Idol,' it would rotate 'A.I.' with "The Voice" and each would air once a year.

We're also told NBC has Ryan Seacrest as the favored host the second time around, and FOX would also entertain bringing Ryan back.

Our sources say the target date for bringing 'Idol' back is either Summer 2018 or mid-season 2019.

The Popeyes employee who called "American Idol" runner-up Bo Bice a "white boy" ... thinks he could have handled the situation better, instead of getting her suspended.

Brooke Harpe told TMZ ... she'd love to apologize to Bice, and wishes he'd given her the chance to do so in the first place. Harpe's been benched for about a week now, and says Bo made a mountain out of a molehill. She thinks there was a much simpler, tastier way to resolve the matter.

She says Popeyes just gave her the okay to return to work starting Monday.

Bice broke down while talking about the incident last week, saying it would be considered racist if roles were reversed.

An "American Idol" contestant got an earful from the show ... and now he's suing because the show screwed up his hearing so much it all but ruined his music career.

Michael Simeon claims he was fitted for an earpiece during his 2014 stint on the show and it caused him immediate, excruciating pain. When he pleaded for the audiologist to remove it, Simeon claims she yanked it out of his ear with such ferocity, it took out a portion of his eardrum.

To add insult to literal injury, Simeon says he was writhing in pain and all producers did was send him to a room where he sat for 5 agonizing hours.

Simeon says he was treated for tympanoplasty and hasn't performed at nearly the same level ever since. He finished in the top 24 that year of season 14.

He doesn't say how much he wants, but he's clearly gunning for a lot.

"American Idol" producers are a sleazy, money-hogging bunch who made MILLIONS off the back of one songwriter who never got her cut ... so claims the lady in new legal docs.

A woman named Molasses Jones claims she wrote Jordin Sparks' "No Air" but never saw a dime, so she filed a claim in the reality show's bankruptcy case ... asking for a whopping $24 million bucks.

Jones says producers somehow got access to her private journals and stole lyrics she wrote long before Jordin joined the show.

Jones wants a slice of the millions 'Idol' made from "No Air."

And she's not stopping there -- Jones is also staking claim to some other pop tunes, including "No One" and "Single Ladies." We checked ... she's not credited as a writer on any of those tracks.

We've reached out to 'Idol' brass ... but they're slow as molasses.

"American Idol" finalist Curtis "C.J." Harris is back behind bars -- and will be for the next month -- all because he claims he mixed up his dates.

Law enforcement officials in Alabama tell TMZ ... Harris turned himself in Monday after an arrest warrant was issued due to his skipping out on a court date last month.

Harris was supposed to be in court Oct. 27 for his drug arrest, but we're told he claims he confused that for another date. We broke the story ... Harris was arrested in an undercover drug bust for selling oxycodone and marijuana. He's facing 3 felonies.

Harris will now be held without bail until a hearing later this month.

"American Idol" finalist Curtis "C.J." Harris was arrested in an undercover drug bust for allegedly selling oxycodone and marijuana.

Law enforcement officials in Alabama tell us Harris was arrested Thursday after allegedly selling drugs to a confidential informant.

Harris was hit with 3 counts of felony distribution of a controlled substance. We're told he's still in custody and is being held on a $90k bond.

Harris finished 6th during season 13 of the show ... Caleb Johnson took home the crown that year.