Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj Considered as 'The Voice' Judges Before 'American Idol'

Mariah Carey and Nicki Minaj were both in talks as potential judges for The Voice before inking deals with American Idol.  According to a source close to the show, the pair of American Idol judges could have been the replacements for Cee Lo Green and Christina Aguilera instead of Usher and Shakira.  Interesting!

According to US Weekly, The Voice's spring 2013 panel could have been Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton.  Mariah was the first to sign on with American Idol, but one has to wonder if Nicki was still negotiating with both shows before finally inking a deal with Idol.

I think Mariah and Nicki would have been a train wreck as a pair on The Voice, due to the aspect of judges competing with each other for contestants, but either alone might have been an interesting fit.  Mariah could have filled the diva role of Xtina, while Nicki might have been a good match for the departing spectacle of "uniqueness" that is Cee Lo Green.

I think I like how things turned out though.  One of the things I enjoy most about The Voice is the camaradiere between the judges and I think Usher and Shakira will fit into that dynamic better than Carey and Minaj.  The whole thing does make the ratings battle between the two shows in the spring all the more interesting though!