HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — Ellen DeGeneres plans to bring “compassion” to her new moonlighting gig on “American Idol,” a trait she saw in the woman she’s replacing — Paula Abdul.
“Paula was a huge part of the show, and that’s a role that needs to be filled by someone in a totally different way,” DeGeneres revealed on Thursday’s “On Air with Ryan Seacrest.”
“I think you can be honest in a pretty kind way,” she added. “I hope to be that compassionate person. That’s the one thing Paula did bring, that compassion.”
As for how she’ll handle Simon Cowell, the cynic judge who often sparred with Abdul, the 51-year-old DeGeneres said she has no problem keeping him in line.
“I’ll tell him the same thing [I tell him when] he’s on [my] show, that he’s mean,” she insisted.
While many have questioned the addition of DeGeneres due to her lack of music experience, the daytime host stressed that she’ll bring a fresh and unique perspective to the show.
“I’m just a fan like everybody else,” she explained. “Ultimately, it doesn’t come down to some expert in the music industry, it comes down to the person at home that says, ‘That’s the person I relate to and whose records I’m going to buy.’ I hope to be that voice.”
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