'American Idol': Bobby Bones Was Unsure He Would Return for Another Season

Bobby Bones is opening up about his return to American Idol. The host of the award-winning [...]

By Gayle Thompson

Bobby Bones is opening up about his return to American Idol. The host of the award-winning iHeartRadio The Bobby Bones Show is grateful to return to the Idol stage, especially since he wasn't initially sure the invitation would be extended to another year.

"Yesterday I got to do the American Idol announcement where, I'm officially going back to American Idol," Bones said on his show, in a clip he shared on Twitter. "So, that's kind of a big deal. It is a big deal. I start shooting in four weeks, because we go and do the auditions. Those start in cities. By the way, I would encourage you, if you want to be a famous singer, go check out the auditions. We're going to be all over America."

Bones knew for a while before he was allowed to announce that he would be returning to the reality TV talent show for Season 18.

"I've known for a few weeks, officially," Bones acknowledged. "I didn't know for a while if they were bringing me back, because they were like, 'Hmm, we need to re-evaluate.' The judges didn't know if they were coming back, and then all at once ..."

Bones is grateful that everyone, including Ryan Seacrest, will return for another year, even if he wishes his return could have been made public in a different way.

"You know, I kind of wish, selfishly, that they would have held me off – either let me go before the judges or after the judges," Bones conceded. "They just kind of went, 'Guess who's coming back? Luke Bryan, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Bobby Bones. And so I get left off because I'm not near as famous as they are."

The 39-year-old still can't believe he's part of such a revolutionary show, even as he gears up to return for the second year in a row for the entire season.

"To walk out on the stage, when those big 'American Idol' letters are up, I've had a couple moments where I go, 'Oh man, if I could tell the kid in me who was watching the show that this was going to happen, I don't think that I would have believed me,'" Bones confessed to ABC's Nightline. "It's a legacy, and I don't want to be the one to screw it up. Really, I don't."

Photo Credit: Getty images/ Gary Miller

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