Lionel Richie Says He 'Didn't Know' About Katy Perry's Plans to Leave 'American Idol'

Lionel Richie is reacting to Katy Perry‘s American Idol exit announcement.

Earlier this week, the 39-year-old “Dark Horse” singer announced that she will be leaving the ABC singing competition after season 22, which premieres this weekend.

While appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Thursday (Feb. 15), Lionel, 74, reacted to Katy‘s announcement, which he says he didn’t know about ahead of time.

Keep reading to find out more…“I’m not mad,” Lionel said. “It just made me run off the road when I first heard about it. My phone blew up.”

When Katy announced her plans to leave Idol, she said she was doing it because she hopes “to go and see the world and maybe bring new music.”

“No, we didn’t know about it, but it makes sense,” Lionel added. “In other words: The reason I love coming on the show with you and the reason I’m doing American Idol is because I have 400 years of stories and a life in the music business. I have things that I’ve done.”

Lionel then also pointed that Katy is in a very different point in her career than he is.

“When Katy says, ‘I want to go and create some stories,’ remember, she’s young,” Lionel said. “The point is that you have to take some time and actually be an artist.”

Katy, Lionel, and Luke Bryan have been serving as the judges of Idol since the show was revived by ABC in 2018. As of right now, Lionel doesn’t know who might replace Katy, but teased that it will “be really interesting” to see who steps in.

“I’m telling you something, this is a great show,” Lionel said. “And what I love most of all is that we’re artists, so we know what we’re talking about, and these kids are scared to death, so I love sitting there as the wise poobahs, the three of us, and we’re sitting there and we’re all kind of giving information that we know is real.”

“So, whoever’s coming on the show has got to be, well, to come past Katy, you’ve gotta be humorous forever, and, on top of that, knowledgeable,” Lionel added.

Season 22 of American Idol premieres on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 8pm ET on ABC. It was recently announced that an Idol alum will be joining as a new mentor!