While not the longest running judge in Idol history (that title goes to Randy Jackson, who stayed through Season 12), Abdul was well known and beloved for being kind and compassionate while still giving the hopefuls on the competition critiques which would help them as artists.
As Seacrest noted in his caption, Luke Bryan’s seat is in good hands until he can return to set and continue filming with the live episodes of American Idol.
Paula Abdul was a judge on the hit series from Seasons 1 through 8, and only left prior to Season 9 because she couldn’t reach a deal on her contract.