Now that Dancing with the Stars has officially wrapped up, it’s time to shift our focus back to reality television’s reigning giant: American Idol.

With only 6 weeks left to go until the January premiere, promotion for Season 8 has officially begun. On today’s episode of The View, Randy Jackson tried to put everyone at ease about the new judging addition. When asked if Kara DioGuardi was brought in because of an eventual Paula departure, the producer quickly shrugged off the rumor and told everyone not to “believe what you hear or read.”

But should Paula decide to pursue “other ventures” as is speculated, would she even be missed? That’s hard to say. But in a recent interview with Extra!, Simon Cowell was actually kind enough to pay Kara a compliment. “She’s mouthy, this girl. I’m beginning to warm to her… I think she knows what she’s talking about,” he admitted.

So aside from a fourth voice, what else - or who else - can fans expect in the upcoming months? Well, if Cowell has the ability to make lightning strike twice, we could possibly get a performance from Britney Spears. Earlier this morning, Ryan Seacrest talked to his friend/rival about the pop princess’ recent appearance on the The X Factor. After seeing the numbers she helped pull in for his British program (the reality series had its best ratings to date), Simon said he’d be a fool to not milk her comeback for all it’s worth. “I would literally have her on my show every week for the next 10 years,” the judge stated.

American Idol 8 begins its two-night premiere on January 13. Until then, you can see some of Kara’s “mouthy” comments in the new promo up above.

(You can find all the American Idol 8 posts here.)