Nicki Minaj retires from American Idol

Nicki Minaj is reportedly planning to retire from her role as judge on American Idol.

The Roman Reloaded rapper is currently a panellist alongside Randy Jackson, Mariah Carey and Keith Urban on the TV singing competition.

Apparently American Idol has suffered a dismal decline in ratings this season with figures down 20 percent year on year.

Randy announced he was leaving the show after serving as judge on the programme for a dozen years.

Nicki is said to be following Randy’s lead.

"It's safe to say she isn't coming back to Idol," a source told Us Weekly magazine. "She's okay with it. She had a great time but was only going to do one season anyway."

Nicki has bickered with Mariah throughout her stint on American Idol.

She most recently called the songstress “bitter” and “insecure”.

Nicki is said to be putting her focus on her new album, endorsement deals and other professional pursuits.

Radar recently reported that executive producer Nigel Lythgoe is planning a complete overhaul of the current judging panel.

Apparently he is hoping to replace the existing judges with a “dream team” consisting of Justin Bieber, Pink, Selena Gomez and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.

Rumours have swirled that the Idol producers hatched a plan to uproot Carey from her judging post and replace her with more popular former judge Jennifer Lopez.

Jennifer revealed to USA Today that she just isn’t sure whether she will be returning to Idol.

"I don't know. That's the question of the moment. I loved doing the show. I've said that over and over. If it came down to it and things were right and it worked out right -- we have a lot going on right now," she said.

"For an offer to come in and for me to consider it, I would have to sit down and look at my next year.