Luke Bryan is standing up for his fellow American Idol judge Katy Perry after fans accused the singer of being a bully towards contestants and even called for her removal from the competition show. When speaking with reporters at CMA Fest in Nashville, Tenn., Bryan commented on the controversy surrounding Perry, saying that her intentions as a judge are good.
"Katy Perry's been dealing with stuff like that her whole career," Bryan said, according to Fox News. "We all get it.... I mean we're judging kids that people at home fall in love with.... We're not gonna bat 1,000 as judges."
"I think we get set up," he continues. "As judges, you know, we kinda fall on the sword a lot of times. And get set up to where people can get very vocal on socials and stuff."
Bryan added that Perry, Lionel Richie and himself are "doing the best we can" every time they sit down behind the judge's desk.
Bryan — who closed out the final night of the festival on Sunday, June 11 — attributed Perry's behavior to her sense of humor, saying she is receiving criticism for "trying to have fun" on the show.
"You can't be so safe in the moment that you're so homogenized, you can't ever go for a joke. Or go for a fun moment," Bryan said. "Sometimes, you just gotta say stuff."
He also remarked that the tables could turn, and the online criticism from viewers could be directed at him at any time.
"It may be my year, next year," he adds.
Criticism of Perry as a judge stemmed from multiple moments that occurred during the show's last season. Early in the season, she was accused of "mom-shaming" contestant Sara Beth Liebe when she made an unusual joke about the fact that the 25-year-old singer had three children. Later in the season, Perry was booed by the crowd when she told Nutsa Buzaladze to tone down the "glitter" in her next performance.
"Nutsa, every time you take the stage, it's like you glitter bomb the stage," Perry said during the episode. "Listen, I think one thing I personally would like to see from you is not one piece of glitter the next time. I know that's gonna be hard."
Some viewers have since called for Perry to be removed from the show and replaced with singer Alanis Morissette instead. Morissette served as a guest host while Perry and Richie were absent due to their obligations to perform at the coronation of King Charles III.
No official announcement has been made regarding Perry's status with the show.
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