American Idol the winner determined by American viewers using phones, Internet, and SMS text voting. The winners of the first sixteen seasons, as chosen by viewers, are Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, Fantasia Barrino, Carrie Underwood, Taylor Hicks, Jordin Sparks, David Cook, Kris Allen, Lee DeWyze, Scotty McCreery, Phillip Phillips, Candice Glover, Caleb Johnson, Nick Fradiani, Trent Harmon, and Maddie Poppe, respectively. "American Idol" employs a panel of vocal judges who critique the contestants' performances. The original judges, for the first through eighth seasons, were record producer and music manager Randy Jackson, singer and choreographer Paula Abdul, and music executive and manager Simon
Search for the Idol Philippines Sanchez, the runner-up of the 11th season of American Idol, will be added as a judge but it has been denied by her. Billy Crawford confirmed his role as the host after he also renewed his contract with the network. In 2018, ABS-CBN acquired the rights to air the third incarnation of the "Idol" in the Philippines. On October 17, 2018, Regine Velasquez was revealed as the first judge following her contract signing with the network. The following month, also after a contract signing, Billy Crawford was announced to host the show. Search for the Idol Philippines Search for the