It has just been announced that Mariah Carey will be joining the next season of “American Idol!”

The deal was closed just hours ago and Mariah is looking to make a whole lot of cash.

Fox president Kevin Reilly made the announcement to reporters at the TV Critics Association press tour.

“It’s the biggest recording artist than any of these shows have ever had,” explains Reilly. “It’s an artist many of these contestants have tried to emulate. [The deal] only concluded only hours ago. Not being the only game in town, we need to keep things fresh.”

Mariah herself was not in attendance at the press conference, but she did make a quick speech via speakerphone.

“I am so excited to be joining Idol. I wish I could have been there myself to tell you. It all kind of just happened real quickly. I can’t wait to get started in a couple months…I will see you in January!”

So with Mariah joining the judging table and Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler leaving, what does that mean for Randy Jackson?

Well, Reilly dodged the question and simply said, “Randy has been working with Mariah for a long, long time and is in fact her co-manager. Randy was very instrumental in this deal.”

Mariah is rumored to be getting a huge check, somewhere between $12-17 million for one season!

See you at auditions Mariah, don’t forget to bring the crazy!