Randy Jackson

Randall Darius Jackson (born June 23, 1956) is an American record executive, television presenter and musician, best known as a judge on American Idol from 2002 to 2013.

Jackson has a prolific career as a session musician, primarily playing bass guitar for an array of jazz, pop, rock, and R&B performers since the 1980s. He moved on to work in music production and in the A&R department at Columbia Records and MCA Records. Jackson is best known from his appearances as the longest-serving judge on American Idol and executive producer for MTV's America's Best Dance Crew.

In May 2020, Jackson was rehired as bassist for Journey following their sudden split with founding member Ross Valory.

Jackson was born June 23, 1956, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, the son of Julia, a homemaker, and Herman Jackson, a plant foreman. He graduated from Southern University in 1979 with a bachelor's degree in music.

Throughout his career, Jackson performed on more than 1,000 recordings, and is thus connected to more than 200 million record sales worldwide.

Biography summary from English Wikipedia, photograph via Wikimedia Commons.