Keith Urban Will Be Back for Final Season of ‘American Idol’

Country fans will get one more season to see Keith Urban as a judge on American Idol.

On Monday (May 11), Fox announced that Idol would be back for a 15th and final season with judges Jennifer Lopez, Harry Connick Jr. and Urban, as well as long-time host Ryan Seacrest.

"American Idol will begin its 15th – and final – season this January on Fox," the network says in an announcement. "A season-long celebratory event, American Idol XV will feature host Ryan Seacrest and judges Jennifer Lopez, Keith Urban and Harry Connick Jr., as they search for the final Idol superstar and pay tribute to the past 14 seasons of amazingly talented contestants and the millions of fans who tweeted, texted and championed their Idols."

American Idol kicked off in 2002; Kelly Clarkson, then an unknown singer, won that first season. Since then, stars like Carrie Underwood (the top-earning Idol winner), Jennifer Hudson, Scotty McCreery and others have won the singing competition show. Though the television show was once a ratings behemoth, the current season has generated a 2.7 rating among adults 18-49 and 10.7 million viewers on Wednesday evenings.

The upcoming season begins in January and will be Urban's fourth season judging on the show.

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