What the winner gets
Outside of exposure, the winners of American Idol receive a pretty penny and a record contract with Hollywood Records.
They first received $125,000, and then an additional $100,000 after they complete an entire album for a total of $250,000, according to Newsweek.
The Idol winners also "have a budget of as much as $300,000 to record that album, which is given as an advance that they will have to pay back against future earnings," according to the outlet.
While this might seem like a lot of money, the prize money is substantially lower now than in previous years.
For example, Kelly Clarkson, Ruben Studdard, and Fantasia Barrino were awarded $1million deals, but because the popularity of the show has dropped, the network had to reduce its payout.
Katy Perry 'stole the spotlight'
Katy Perry previously seemed to have stolen the spotlight from a contestant.
During Madison Neisius's audition in Dallas, Katy's hair extension suddenly fell out.
"I rocked and rolled too hard," the star said.
Katy's laughter cut Madison off as the other judges decided to have some fun with her hair.
Judge Luke put the extra hair on as Katy asked for a request from the startled singer.
She demanded: "Can we just let him borrow your guitar for one second?
"I need him to sing Achy Breaky Heart."
Critics dragged the California Gurls hitmaker through the mud as one said: "Always trying to take over. It’s not about you Katy!
A second critic threatened to boycott and claimed: "This is why I won’t watch while Katy Perry is still on."
American Idol scandals: A controversial kiss
The current judges, Katy Perry, Lionel Richie, and Luke Bryan have proved less contentious and controversial than past panels.
However, in 2018, Katy kissed a contestant on the show and they didn't like it, which caused backlash from fans.
Benjamin Glaze auditioned for the show and told the judging panel that he had never been kissed before.
Katy beckoned Benjamin over for a kiss on the cheek, but then turned her head and kissed him on the lips.
Even though the contestant told The New York Times that the kiss made him "a bit uncomfortable," he did not think he was sexually harassed by Katy.
He clarified on Instagram: “I am not complaining about the kiss from Katy Perry at all, doing a few news reports and being interviewed by many different reporters has caused some major questions."
American Idol scandals: Carey v. Minaj, cont.
After a contentious season, Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj finally spoke out about the tension between the two.
In 2013, Nicki spoke to Ellen DeGeneres and said that she didn't believe Mariah was going to be on the show.
When they started working together, Nicki “started feeling a little bit of, like, the shade" so she “overcompensated by being crazier.”
In 2015, Mariah spoke out about the feud in a radio interview and said the show was “the worst experience of my life."
“I’m not going to get into what it was. Let’s just say, I don’t think they had any intentions of us having a good experience through that show. Pitting two females against each other wasn’t cool.”
Neither Nicki nor Mariah returned for season 13.
American Idol scandals: The infamous Carey-Minaj feud
One of the most memorable and controversial panels of American Idol was Randy Jackson, Keith Urban, Mariah Carey, and Nicki Minaj.
Mariah and Nicki butted heads so much on the show that it led fans to wonder if their feud was real.
TMZ obtained videos before the season started of Nicki and Mariah arguing, with Nicki claiming that she wanted to "shoot Mariah."
Nicki denied the claims.
During live shows, Nicki even told Mariah to "clean her ears out" after critiquing a contestant's performance.
American Idol scandals: Brittany Kerr and Jason Aldean
Season 11 contestant Brittany Kerr allegedly kissed country singer Jason Aldean when he was married.
TMZ obtained photos of Jason and the former contestant talking on a crowded bar patio area on The Sunset Strip in 2012.
They appeared to get very flirty with each other - hugging, touching, and kissing each other.
At the time, Jason was married to his high school sweetheart, Jessica Ussery.
Brittany and Jason ended up getting married and now have four children together.
