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'American Idol' returns! The premiere recap

'American Idol' team Randy Jackson, Mariah Carey, Ryan Seacrest, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban couldn't stop a ratings slide (Credit: Michael Becker, Fox)

If Mariah Carey was concerned that Nicki Minaj might show her up, she was right.

Minaj - one of three new judges on American Idol this season, along with Carey and Keith Urban - grabs attention the moment the camera lights come on. She'll be the most polarizing part of the show's 12th season, which premiered Wednesday. The show's long-suffering, more conservative audience may hate her, even to the...