Judge Paula Abdul of THE X FACTOR on September 22, 2011 in New York, New York. (Photo by Brad Barket/PictureGroup).
Paula Abdul is enjoying her new ride on The X Factor (Wednesdays, Thursdays, 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, FOX) primarily because audiences are finally getting a chance to see just how versatile her talents are as well as the skills among the rest of the judges/mentors.
“We bring experience, we bring stage performance, we bring amazing success as record producers and as executives, producers, stage design and directing,” Abdul points out.
Plus, she tells us, the time out of the public eye after she left American Idol allowed her to prepare for the scrutiny she’s currently under – and helped her get ready for another round with her cohort Simon Cowell.
It is a whole different experience for me in the sense that I get Simon – he gets me,” she begins. “I understand the nature of reality television. I’m here to help make the best show ever and Simon knows that. That’s why he contacted me immediately after I left [American Idol]. I’m thrilled to be back and it’s like riding a bike. It’s just that I’m riding the next level of 10 speeds with a little power pack on the back.”
And though Cowell and Abdul trade jabs on camera, she claims they really have a strong connection to each other.
“Believe it or not we became really good friends and we talk on the phone. It’s just when we get in front of each other, the camera brings out the worst in both of us and also the best,” Abdul insists. “I will say this, after nine years of working together with Simon, I really got a sense of understanding the complex man that he is. And he got a chance to really understand me. It became a very comfortable back and forth, but passionate. We’re both passionate people.”