Simon Cowell Apologizes for Harsh Comments on ‘American Idol’
Photo by: Trae Patton/NBC Reading Time: 2 minutes
Simon Cowell became a household name due to his mean persona as a judge on American Idol. In more recent years, Cowell has softened his approach to judging. The music mogul apologized for his past harsh comments in a new interview.
Simon Cowell Apologizes for American Idol Comments
In an interview with the New York Times, Simon Cowell reflected on his American Idol years, claiming he “wasn’t trying to be a [expletive] on purpose.” Rather, he was simply approaching the show as a record producer.
“All I wanted with these shows was to find successful artists to sign to the label,” Cowell said. “So when all these people were coming in and they couldn’t sing, I would be like when I used to audition people and someone would come in and they can’t sing. We would say after 10 seconds, ‘You can’t sing.’ Not, ‘You’re going to be brilliant.'”
Cowell added that he “changed over time,” adding, “I did realize I’ve probably gone too far.” He admitted that he got “fed up” during the “long and boring” audition days, saying, “And of course, out of a hundred nice comments, what are they going to use? They’re always going to use me in a bad mood. I got that. What can I say? I’m sorry.”
He went on to say that he’s “not proud” of his harsher moments on the show, but he still admitted that “the upside is that it made the shows really popular worldwide.”
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Cowell Calls Himself ‘Genuinely Oblivious’
Simon Cowell is still a talent show judge, appearing on both America’s Got Talent and Britain’s Got Talent. His approach to judging has definitely softened over the years, which is partly to do with him becoming a father to his son Eric.
“Everything just felt monotonous,” Cowell said of life before parenthood. “And then, it was like my life changed when he was born. Everything started again.”
Cowell shared that he lives “in a bubble,” adding, “I don’t have a phone, and I don’t read anything online. I don’t read newspapers … I’m really genuinely oblivious, and I do it for a reason: because I’m happier that way. When you ask me about being softer now, I think maybe part of the reason is that I just don’t get caught up in anything. I don’t want to change that.”
Do you prefer the mean Simon Cowell or the nicer Simon Cowell? Let us know in the comments below.
