American Idol Simon Cowell, left, speaks to the audience as fellow judges Paula Abdul, center, and Randy Jackson look on during the finals of the music competition show Tuesday, May 25, 2004, at the Kodak Theatre in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)Fox and the producers of “American Idol” say Randy Jackson is leaving the show after 13 seasons.
In a statement Tuesday, the network and producers call Jackson a key part of the singing contest and say he’ll be welcomed back as a visitor.
Phone and email requests to his publicist seeking comment were not immediately returned.
Jackson, Simon Cowell and Paula Abdul made up Idol’s original judging panel. Jackson served as a judge for 12 seasons, with “dawg” becoming his trademark word while assessing contestants.
Jackson moved to the role of mentor this year. His departure leaves host Ryan Seacrest as the only original cast member.