‘American Idol’: Katy Perry Jokes ‘Social Distancing’ With Judges Amid Coronavirus Fears

There was a first on American Idol during Sunday’s episode. In what is the last set of auditions for the season, one tryout in particular had quite a different feel to it. That’s because the judges decided to get some fresh air and go outside to set up an impromptu “boat vote.”

Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan walked towards a yacht and grabbed contestant Megan Knight. The four headed on top of the boat where Knight won over the judges and earned a Golden Ticket. On Twitter, Perry, who recently revealed she was pregnant, joked about the “six feet of separation” amid the growing coronavirus fear.

“This was before the 6 foot social distance rule…sometimes I wish that always applied between [Luke Bryan] [Lionel Richie] and I,” she wrote.

During last week’s episode, the show began with the judges announcing a new addition to their team. This turned out to be the pregnancy announcement by Perry. With her pregnancy, the singer has been very caution due to the nature of the COVID-19 spread. She is reportedly in lockdown.

American Idol wrapped up its audition process on Sunday and will continue on Monday with the start of Hollywood Week where the season will truly ramp up.

Heading into the new installment, Bryan talked very highly about the competition ahead. He also called it his favorite season.

“The best part of the new season is we’re seeing more songwriters come out with better songs,” Bryan said, via ABC Audio. “Songwriters and people that think that they don’t fit the American Idol criteria, they’re coming out.”

American Idol will air on Monday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and continue forward with a Sunday and Monday schedule with all episodes beginning at the same time. That could change, however, depending on what happens with the coronavirus pandemic over the next few weeks. The live shows could reportedly be in jeopardy.

According to Deadline, a decision by Fremantle and ABC will be made as the live shows get closer. They aren’t set to begin until April, leaving at least two weeks for the company to make a decision on what the next step is.

Photo Credit: ABC/Stewart Cook