Citing “hectic schedules” as the reason for the switch, Grammy Award-winning singer Mariah Carey has decided to let go of her fellow “American Idol” judge Randy Jackson as her manager and move to Red Light Management, joining its other artists such as fellow R ‘n’ B diva Alicia Keys, the husband and wife tandem of Faith Hill and Tim McGraw, and English rock band Radiohead. Jackson had managed Carey since 2011.
Jackson, who had been very instrumental in getting Carey her current judging stint on “Idol”, also figured heavily in securing the mega $18 million pay day for the 43-year-old songstress. On air, there’s no indication of any friction between the two, with most of the verbal tussles happening between Carey and another first-time judge Nicki Minaj.
Carey signed her contract with Red Light about the same time she dropped her new single with Miguel entitled “#Beautiful” but the timing of her big switch may have been a little early, with a couple of weeks left to go in the current season of “Idol” before the grand finale. It might feel a little awkward for the two judges when they sit side by side one another in the panel in the remaining episodes.
Jackson, who has collaborated with Carey for most of her career, produced two of the tracks in her 2001 “Glitter” soundtrack. Having broken into film acting outside of her illustrious career in music, Carey will star anew in Lee Daniels’ upcoming film “The Butler”, their second collaboration after “Precious: Based on the Novel PUSH by Sapphire”.