Our long national nightmare is over: Ryan Seacrest is confirmed to return as host of American Idol for Season 24, TVLine has learned.

This news comes as the ABC competition show is set to kick off its “ Idol Across America” auditions, beginning Tuesday, Sept. 9 with hopefuls from Alaska, California, Hawaii, Nevada and Washington. (A full breakdown of the audition touring schedule can be found on Idol ‘s official website .)

In case you missed the previous news about Idol’s judging panel, allow us to catch you up: all three current judges — Luke Bryan, Lionel Richie and Carrie Underwood — are confirming to be returning for Season 24. Bryan and Richie have been part of the judges’ panel since Idol debuted on ABC in Season 16, making this their ninth season judging together

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