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Nicki Minaj: Is she leaving 'American Idol'?

Nicki Minaj leaving? Is this her first and last season on 'American Idol'? An 'insider' quoted in Us Weekly says Nicki Minaj will be moving on.

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Michael Becker/Fox/AP
Is Nicki Minaj leaving the judges' panel? Here, Minaj (second from l.) sits with fellow judges Keith Urban (l.), Randy Jackson (second from r.), and Mariah Carey (r.).
  • By Molly Driscoll Staff Writer

Will first-time judge Nicki Minaj return to “American Idol” after the current season?

No, according to an “insider” report by Us Weekly.

“It's safe to say she isn't coming back to Idol," the person identified as an “insider” said, according to Us Weekly. "She's okay with it. She had a great time but was only going to do one season anyway.”

The report on Minaj comes after “Idol” host Ryan Seacrest asked her whether she’d be coming back next year during his radio show on May 9.

“That's a million-dollar question," she said. "I have to say this all the time, but I want people to know it's genuinely from my heart. I love the people on 'Idol.' I genuinely do. If I had to do this all over again, I would have done 'Idol.' Because it's fun, it's laughs.”

The story on Minaj was released soon after Randy Jackson, who had served as an “American Idol” judge since the program’s inception when former judges Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell sat at the table with him, said he would not be returning next year.

“Yo! Yo! Yo! To put all of the speculation to the rest, after 12 years of judging on American Idol I have decided it is time to leave after this season," Jackson said in a statement to Us Weekly. "I am very proud of how we forever changed television and the music industry.”

Minaj served on the judges’ panel with Jackson and fellow first-time judges Mariah Carey and Keith Urban. She released her most recent album, “Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded,” in April 2012 and it was certified platinum, as was her 2010 debut album “Pink Friday.”

This past April, she was named the female rapper who had appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the most times. Her number of titles that have appeared on the chart, 44, is exactly the same as her fellow “Idol” judge Carey.

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