Who Should Have Replaced Paula Abdul on American Idol?

I know... I know... we haven't even seen her on one episode yet, but already people are ready to cast stones at her and kick her off the show! I thought it was worth giving it a shot but it seems that most of America has spoken - Ellen was not a good choice for the show. So who would have been a better replacement for Paula Abdul?

What I've noticed is that even though the song selections the contestants do favor variety, it appears that the judges do not. You'll usually find a lot of popular music on American Idol, at least from what I've heard over the years, but what about jazz... or neo-soul... or hip-hop... or R&B... or dare I say, gospel? Perhaps if they had included a judge from another genre than pop it would shake things up a bit and give the contestants some feedback that's a bit more diversified.

I've thought it through and want to present 7 candidates that could have been Paula Abdul's replacement on American Idol...

1. Kirk Franklin. If you're not familiar with Kirk Franklin, he's big on the gospel sector, but his music has crossed over into the secular realm and I think he would have made a very interesting judge on American Idol. His music isn't churchy by any means, but you do hear some pop undertones in his music, so I'd think he's familiar enough with pop music to judge it accurately but also to provide some freshness that the show needs.

2. Willie Nelson. Yeah, I went out in left field for that one, but hear me out. He's been in the country music sector for some time now, which is why I think he'd be a good choice. He's been in music for a looooong time and I'm sure he's aware of what's good and what's not.

3. India Arie. Yes, the neo-soul girl with the guitar herself. She's been a face in music for the last few years and I think given her sound and experience that she'd be able to provide some much-needed flavor to American Idol. I don't know if she'd be quite the encourager that Paula Abdul was, but I think she'd have been a good fit with Randy at least.

4. Ruben Studdard. How's about that for an idea... a PREVIOUS American Idol winner as a judge! I'm surprised no one thought of that. Obviously he knows what it takes to win the contest, he's done it before! While everyone else is critiquing musically, he can critique appearance, style, and ask the tough questions about being able to handle the crown of being an American Idol.

5. Kenny G. I just think this one would have opened some eyes. I'm not sure how well he would have worked out, and coming from the instrumental world into the vocal arena might have been a drastic shift for him. I still think it would have been just as good of a choice as Ellen was.

6. Sheila E. Enough said.

7. An everyday music fan. Hear me out on this one. American Idol could have done a contest where you, the audience, register to win a chance to be the next judge for a season (or at least through the auditions). I think that would have drawn mass appeal and further boosted the ratings as you wouldn't have known who the judge would have been until the first episode.