The American Idol judges — Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan and Lionel Richie — are inviting viewers to join them on a journey to make an Idol hopeful’s dreams come true in their first video promo of the 2025 season.
“Here at American Idol, you never forget the moment that changed everything 💙,” the video caption read. The promo opens with all three judges and host Ryan Seacrest gathered around a coffee table in what appears to be a naturally lit sitting room.
Seacrest picks up a denim scrapbook with the Idol logo on it and hands it to Lionel Richie. “It’s incredible how many lives Idol’s changed,” Seacrest says. Richie responds, “It proves that dreams really do come true,” before passing the book to Carrie Underwood. “This is the place where it all started for me,” Underwood says as she sets the scrapbook on the table.
Luke Bryan then flips open the book to reveal a video of him from early on in his career, encouraging viewers, “if you’re dreaming out there, please keep dreaming because they do come true.” He later adds, “You’ll never forget that moment that changed everything.”
As the just over a minute-long video continues, powerful clips showing the life-changing moments from Bryan, Richie, Underwood and Seacrest’s own careers, including Carrie Underwood’s crowning moment on Idol during season 4 in 2005.
Watch The First Promo Video For Season 23 Of American Idol
“That’s what Idol is all about,” Underwood says as Bryan adds, “see in the moment a dream comes true. “And now is the time to start a new journey,” Richie continues, with Seacrest chiming in to say “and find the next American Idol.”
The video concludes with a sneak peek at the upcoming season, which premieres on March 9 on ABC, including this forthcoming season’s first Platinum ticket recipients, Kolbi Jordan and Filo. The idol judges surprises Kolbi Jordan with her Platinum ticket during a recent Tennessee Titans games and Underwood shocked Filo with his Platinum ticket ahead of her performance on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on New Year’s Eve in New York City.
American Idol Premiere Date
The 2025 season of American Idol will feature Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood, who will be replacing Katy Perry on the judges panel, as well as the show’s longtime host Ryan Seacrest.
“Carrie Underwood is the first ‘American Idol’ alum ever to join the judging panel. Her global superstar status as the most successful ‘Idol’ winner to date makes her a perfect fit for the show. She embodies the true spirit of ‘Idol’ as she herself is the definition of the Cinderella story. Our future hopefuls will have the chance to receive advice from someone who has walked in their exact footsteps every step of the way. Carrie has always been a strong supporter of ‘Idol,’ and I’m thrilled for her to be reunited with our ‘Idol’ Family,” said Megan Wolflick, showrunner and executive producer of Idol.
“I went from nobody knowing my name to tens of millions of people watching the show… I’m proud of everything that I was able to accomplish on the show, and I’m so proud of everything that I’ve accomplished since,” Underwood, an eight-time GRAMMY winner, shared.
Season 23 of American Idol will launch with a two-hour premiere on March 9 at 8/7c via the ABC Network. Additionally, the show will also air the next day on Hulu.
