paragraph_text: The eighth season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2009. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson continued to judge the show's contestants, along with Ryan Seacrest as host. The season introduced Kara DioGuardi as the fourth judge on the Idol panel. It was also Abdul's final season as a judge. Kris Allen, a native of Conway, Arkansas, was announced the winner of the competition on May 20, 2009, defeating runner - up Adam Lambert after nearly 100 million votes. This was the second season where both of the final two contestants had been in the bottom three or two at least once before the finale, with the first being season three.

paragraph_text: The first season of American Idol premiered on June 11, 2002 (under the full title American Idol: The Search for a Superstar) and continued until September 4, 2002. It was won by Kelly Clarkson. That first season was co-hosted by Ryan Seacrest and Brian Dunkleman, the latter of whom left the show after the season ended.

paragraph_text: The declining trend however continued into season eight, as total viewers numbers fell by 5–10% for early episodes compared to season seven, and by 9% for the finale. In season nine, Idol's six-year extended streak of perfection in the ratings was broken, when NBC's coverage of the 2010 Winter Olympics on February 17 beat Idol in the same time slot with 30.1 million viewers over Idol's 18.4 million. Nevertheless, American Idol overall finished its ninth season as the most watched TV series for the sixth year running, breaking the previous record of five consecutive seasons achieved by CBS' All in the Family and NBC's The Cosby Show.

paragraph_text: The wildcard round returned in season eight, wherein there were three groups of twelve, with three contestants moving forward – the highest male, the highest female, and the next highest-placed singer - for each night, and four wildcards were chosen by the judges to produce a final 13. Starting season ten, the girls and boys perform on separate nights. In seasons ten and eleven, five of each gender were chosen, and three wildcards were chosen by the judges to form a final 13. In season twelve, the top twenty semifinalists were split into gender groups, with five of each gender advancing to form the final 10. In season thirteen, there were thirty semifinalists, but only twenty semifinalists (ten for each gender) were chosen by the judges to perform on the live shows, with five in each gender and three wildcards chosen by the judges composing the final 13.

paragraph_text: Paula Lima (born October 10, 1970 in São Paulo) is a Brazilian singer and composer whose music is influenced by bossa, percussion, samba, Brazilian soul international funk and one of judges of Brazilian Idol, Ídolos Brazil (Season 3 and Season 4).

paragraph_text: Fox announced on May 11, 2015 that the fifteenth season would be the final season of American Idol; as such, the season is expected to have an additional focus on the program's alumni. Ryan Seacrest returns as host, with Harry Connick Jr., Keith Urban, and Jennifer Lopez all returning for their respective third, fourth, and fifth seasons as judges.

paragraph_text: The sixteenth season of American Idol premiered on March 11, 2018, on the ABC television network. It is the show's first season to air on ABC. Ryan Seacrest continued his role as the show's host, while Katy Perry, Luke Bryan, and Lionel Richie joined as judges. Maddie Poppe from Clarksville, Iowa won the season on May 21, 2018, while her boyfriend Caleb Lee Hutchinson was runner - up. Poppe was the first female winner since Candice Glover in season twelve.

paragraph_text: Towards the end of the season, Randy Jackson, the last remaining of the original judges, announced that he would no longer serve as a judge to pursue other business ventures. Both judges Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj also decided to leave after one season to focus on their music careers.

paragraph_text: Pia Toscano (born October 14, 1988) is an American singer. Toscano placed ninth on the tenth season of "American Idol". She was considered a frontrunner in the competition, and her elimination shocked judges Randy Jackson, Jennifer Lopez, and Steven Tyler, all of whom were visibly and vocally upset. Some viewers and media outlets described Toscano's departure as one of the most shocking eliminations in "American Idol" history.

paragraph_text: American Idol is broadcast to over 100 nations outside of the United States. In most nations these are not live broadcasts and may be tape delayed by several days or weeks. In Canada, the first thirteen seasons of American Idol were aired live by CTV and/or CTV Two, in simulcast with Fox. CTV dropped Idol after its thirteenth season and in August 2014, Yes TV announced that it had picked up Canadian rights to American Idol beginning in its 2015 season.

paragraph_text: Guest judges may occasionally be introduced. In season two, guest judges such as Lionel Richie and Robin Gibb were used, and in season three Donna Summer, Quentin Tarantino and some of the mentors also joined as judges to critique the performances in the final rounds. Guest judges were used in the audition rounds for seasons four, six, nine, and fourteen such as Gene Simmons and LL Cool J in season four, Jewel and Olivia Newton-John in season six, Shania Twain in season eight, Neil Patrick Harris, Avril Lavigne and Katy Perry in season nine, and season eight runner-up, Adam Lambert, in season fourteen.

paragraph_text: With the exception of seasons one and two, the contestants in the semifinals onwards perform in front of a studio audience. They perform with a full band in the finals. From season four to season nine, the American Idol band was led by Rickey Minor; from season ten onwards, Ray Chew. Assistance may also be given by vocal coaches and song arrangers, such as Michael Orland and Debra Byrd to contestants behind the scene. Starting with season seven, contestants may perform with a musical instrument from the Hollywood rounds onwards. In the first nine seasons, performances were usually aired live on Tuesday nights, followed by the results shows on Wednesdays in the United States and Canada, but moved to Wednesdays and Thursdays in season ten.

paragraph_text: Some in the entertainment industry were critical of the star-making aspect of the show. Usher, a mentor on the show, bemoaning the loss of the "true art form of music", thought that shows like American Idol made it seem "so easy that everyone can do it, and that it can happen overnight", and that "television is a lie". Musician Michael Feinstein, while acknowledging that the show had uncovered promising performers, said that American Idol "isn't really about music. It's about all the bad aspects of the music business – the arrogance of commerce, this sense of 'I know what will make this person a star; artists themselves don't know.' " That American Idol is seen to be a fast track to success for its contestants has been a cause of resentment for some in the industry. LeAnn Rimes, commenting on Carrie Underwood winning Best Female Artist in Country Music Awards over Faith Hill in 2006, said that "Carrie has not paid her dues long enough to fully deserve that award". It is a common theme that has been echoed by many others. Elton John, who had appeared as a mentor in the show but turned down an offer to be a judge on American Idol, commenting on talent shows in general, said that "there have been some good acts but the only way to sustain a career is to pay your dues in small clubs".

paragraph_text: The show had originally planned on having four judges following the Pop Idol format; however, only three judges had been found by the time of the audition round in the first season, namely Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell. A fourth judge, radio DJ Stryker, was originally chosen but he dropped out citing "image concerns". In the second season, New York radio personality Angie Martinez had been hired as a fourth judge but withdrew only after a few days of auditions due to not being comfortable with giving out criticism. The show decided to continue with the three judges format until season eight. All three original judges stayed on the judging panel for eight seasons.

paragraph_text: "Never Too Far" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey for her first soundtrack and eighth studio album, "Glitter" (2001). It was written and produced by herself and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The song was released as the album's second single on October 23, 2001, by Virgin Records America. The song is a mid-tempo ballad which lyrically deals with heartbreak. "Never Too Far" was used on the charity single "Never Too Far/Hero Medley", which combines the first verse of the song with a re-recorded version of the first verse and bridge of Carey's previous single "Hero" (1993).

paragraph_text: The fifth season of reality television singing competition American Idol began on January 17, 2006, and concluded on May 24, 2006. Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell returned to judge, and Ryan Seacrest returned to host. It is the most successful season to date ratings-wise, and resulted in 18 contestants (including all of the top 10 and a few semifinalists) getting record deals -- nine of them with major labels. It was the first season with a male winner (Taylor Hicks) and a female runner - up (Katharine McPhee). It was also the first season of the series to be aired in high definition.

paragraph_text: On February 14, 2009, The Walt Disney Company debuted "The American Idol Experience" at its Disney's Hollywood Studios theme park at the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida. In this live production, co-produced by 19 Entertainment, park guests chose from a list of songs and auditioned privately for Disney cast members. Those selected then performed on a stage in a 1000-seat theater replicating the Idol set. Three judges, whose mannerisms and style mimicked those of the real Idol judges, critiqued the performances. Audience members then voted for their favorite performer. There were several preliminary-round shows during the day that culminated in a "finals" show in the evening where one of the winners of the previous rounds that day was selected as the overall winner. The winner of the finals show received a "Dream Ticket" that granted them front-of-the-line privileges at any future American Idol audition. The attraction closed on August 30, 2014.

paragraph_text: For the finals, American Idol debuted a new state-of-the-art set and stage on March 11, 2008, along with a new on-air look. David Cook's performance of "Billie Jean" on top-ten night was lauded by the judges, but provoked controversy when they apparently mistook the Chris Cornell arrangement to be David Cook's own even though the performance was introduced as Cornell's version. Cornell himself said he was 'flattered' and praised David Cook's performance. David Cook was taken to the hospital after the top-nine performance show due to heart palpitations and high blood pressure.

paragraph_text: The general selection process of each season is begun by the production team with open auditions held in various cities across the United States. Dubbed ``Producers' Auditions '', they are held months before the main stage of auditions are held. Those that make it through the initial stage, become participants in the`` Judges' Auditions'', which are held in select cities across the country, and attended by the judges. Each participant is held offstage and awaits their turn to perform before the judges, whereupon they are given 90 seconds to demonstrate their act, with a live audience present for all performances. At the end of a performance, the judges give constructive criticism and feedback about what they saw, whereupon they each give a vote - a participant who receives a majority vote approving their performance, moves on to the next stage, otherwise they are eliminated from the programme at that stage. Each judge is given a buzzer, and may use it during a performance if they are unimpressed, hate what is being performed, or feel the act is a waste of their time; if a participant is buzzed by all judges, their performance is automatically over and they are eliminated without being given a vote. Many acts that move on may be cut by producers and may forfeit due to the limited slots available for the second performance. Filming for each season always takes place when the Judges' Auditions are taking place, with the show's presenter standing in the wings of each venue's stage to interview and give personal commentary on a participant's performance.

paragraph_text: The season set a record when 132 million votes were gathered for the finale. On May 23, 2012, Phillip Phillips became the winner of the eleventh season of American Idol, beating Jessica Sanchez, the first female recipient of the judges' save.

Question: For how many seasons was the performer of Never Too Far a judge on American Idol?
Answer: one