Meghan Trainor has a dream job — and she’s willing to beg to get it.
Trainor, 30, revealed on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen that she wants to replace Katy Perry as a judge on American Idol. Perry, 39, announced in February that she is leaving the show, hoping to focus on other projects.
Idol judge Luke Bryan and host Ryan Seacrest both previously said Trainor would be a good fit for the show, and the singer has also gone out of her way to make her interest known.
“I’ve done every interview in the world and said that that is my dream job and I have emailed three awesome people who work in that world,” she told Cohen, noting those individuals “don’t really have the full say but I begged.”
Trainor has experience. She’s served as a judge on The Voice UK, Australian Idol and The Four: Battle for Stardom in the past. After she appeared earlier this year as a guest mentor on American Idol, Seacreast speculated about her future as a judge.
“She was very good,” he told Entertainment Tonight. “Meghan is a super talent too, and she’s got a great sense of humor. She’s fun and she’s spontaneous.”
Bryan agreed, adding, “I think Meghan’s always been real fun. You know, that’s kinda been her brand, to have fun. [She’s] real witty, so certainly.”
But despite their endorsements, Trainor has not gotten the call yet.
“I have begged for this job,” she added. “I haven’t heard any updates, so check my emails, but that is my dream job. I want to drive to work at American Idol and then drive home.”
American Idol premiered in 2002, quickly becoming a smash hit and culture touchstone of the early 2000s. It ran on Fox until 2016 before a brief hiatus and revival on ABC. Trainor was 8 years old when the show premiered, and it has been a part of her life since childhood.
“Love being a part of that process, I just get way too attached,” Trainor said. “It’s like my favorite show, I’ve watched it since I was a child.”
Kelly Clarkson, winner of the show’s first season, had been a rumored potential replacement for Perry, but she took herself out of the running because the job would have taken her away from her kids.
“I can’t do that, only because I promised my kids,” she told Entertainment Tonight. “I was like, ‘I wanna be there as much as I possibly can.’ And it would put me in L.A., and that’s why I had to quit The Voice, which I love that team. And I miss them so much.”
