American Idol (season 12) American Idol (season 12) The twelfth season of "American Idol" premiered on January 16, 2013, as part of the mid-season of the 2012–13 network television season. Ryan Seacrest returned to host. Randy Jackson returned for his twelfth season as judge and was joined by new judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban, who replaced Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler. The season was the third to have four judges, after the eighth and ninth seasons. It was also the first season in the show's history where all the finalists of one gender (male) were eliminated before any finalists of the
Latin American Idol Peña was the only contestant who was about to be eliminated, because he was never in any bottom.. This season was characterized by the intention of the production of the show to penetrate more in the Mexican market. Latin American Idol Latin American Idol was the Spanish American edition of the popular British franchise of "Idols", well known for its American version "American Idol". The show aimed to discover the pop idol of the Latin American region. The show was filmed in Buenos Aires and was transmitted to over 23 nations in the region via the Sony Entertainment Television network.