The new King and Queen of England aren’t afraid of a little PR.
Viewers of Sunday night’s American Idol episode got a royal surprise when the newly crowned couple appeared in a livestream alongside judges Katy Perry and Lionel Richie, who were in the U.K. to perform at King Charles‘ coronation.
In their Idol debut, the new King and Queen appeared from Windsor Castle. Before their on-screen entrance, Richie, 73, said the coronation was “unbelievable.”
“We’re trying to figure out what we can do to bring something different to the show,” he continued. Dressed in a glittering black jacket, Richie feigned nervousness as he welcomed his “surprise” into the room.
Perry, dressed in a silky green gown and large pearl necklace and teardrop earrings, curtsied as King Charles and Queen Camilla ambled into frame.
“I just wanted to check, how long you will be using this room for?” King Charles coyly asked the American Idol judges.
He and Queen Camilla thanked Perry, 38, and Richie for their performances.
“Thank you so much. You’re brilliant as always,” he told the singers. “Fantastic, absolutely fantastic.”
Richie joked that King Charles was throwing a party “right next door.”
“Ah, you’ve heard about that,” King Charles replied. “We better take you to that, but you are busy with all these other things.”
Richie promised to join the party as soon as he and Perry were finished with the Idol message.
Both American singers have ties to the British monarchy. Richie is a global ambassador for the Prince’s Trust, a U.K. youth employment and education charity, while Perry is an ambassador for the King Charles-founded British Asian Trust, which strives to eliminate poverty in South Asia.
While they performed at the coronation, British singer Ed Sheeran, who was in New York for a copyright lawsuit, and Canadian artist Alanis Morissette covered Idol hosting duties.
At the Sunday night coronation concert, Richie played the hit songs Easy (Like Sunday Morning) and All Night Long.
Perry performed Roar and Firework as part of her own set. She took the stage in a large, gold Vivienne Westwood gown.
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