Lionel
Richie
is
ready
to
say “hello”
to
his
new
American
Idol
colleague:
Carrie
Underwood.
Days
after
the “Before
He
Cheats”
singer—who
won
season
four
of
the
ABC
competition
series
in
2005—confirmed
she’s
replacing
Katy
Perry
at
the
judges’
table,
Lionel
is
weighing
in
on
his
new
costar.
“It
makes
a
lot
of
sense,”
he
told
E!
News
Aug.
5
while
attending
the
Grammy
Museum’s
screening
of
The
Greatest
Night
in
Pop. “It’s
not
someone
we
have
to
get
used
to.
And
the
fact
that
she
has
a
great
story,
she
came
from
American
Idol.”
(For
more
from
Lionel,
watch
E!
News
Aug.
6
at
11
p.m.)
“What
a
great
judge,”
Lionel
continued, “now
we
don’t
have
to
explain
anymore, ‘We
know
how
you
feel.’
As
artists,
we
know
how
you
feel,
but
we’ve
never
been
in
that
oval
that
says, ‘American
Idol.’
She’s
been
there,
done
that.”
Lionel
also
hopes
Carrie
has
a
great
sense
of
humor
as
she
sits
alongside
him
and
fellow
judge
Luke
Bryan.
“Just
be
a
ham
sandwich
like
the
two
of
us,”
he
said
with
a
laugh. “Welcome
to
the
ham
sandwich
squad.”
