Paula Abdul

Paula Julie Abdul (born June 19, 1962) is an American singer, dancer, choreographer, actress, and television personality. She began her career as a cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers at the age of 18 and later became the head choreographer for the Laker Girls, where she was discovered by the Jacksons. After choreographing music videos for Janet Jackson, Abdul became a choreographer at the height of the music video era and soon thereafter she was signed to Virgin Records.

Abdul's debut studio album, Forever Your Girl (1988), became one of the most successful debut albums at that time, selling seven million copies in the United States and setting a record for the most U.S. Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles from a debut album: "Straight Up", "Forever Your Girl", "Cold Hearted", and "Opposites Attract". Her second album, Spellbound (1991), scored the number-one singles "Rush Rush" and "The Promise of a New Day". With six number-one singles on Hot 100, Abdul tied Diana Ross for the third-most chart-toppers among female solo artists at the time. As of 2025, Abdul places seventh along with Diana Ross and Lady Gaga for the most number-one singles by female artists in the U.S. to date.

Abdul was one of the original judges on the television series American Idol from 2002 to 2009, and has since appeared as a judge on The X Factor, Live to Dance, So You Think You Can Dance, and The Masked Dancer. She received choreography credits in numerous films, including Can't Buy Me Love (1987), The Running Man (1987), Coming to America (1988), Action Jackson (1988), The Doors (1991), Jerry Maguire (1996), and American Beauty (1999). She received 17 MTV Video Music Award nominations, winning five, as well as receiving the Grammy Award for Best Music Video for "Opposites Attract" in 1991. She received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Choreography twice for her work on The Tracey Ullman Show, and her own performance at the American Music Awards in 1990. Abdul was honored with her own star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and is the first entertainer to be honored with the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards' Hall of Fame Award.

Early life Abdul was born in San Fernando, California and is Jewish. Her father, Harry Abdul, is of Syrian Jewish heritage and was born in Aleppo, Syria, raised in Brazil before immigrating to the United States. Her mother, Lorraine (Rykiss), was a concert pianist of Jewish origin, from Minnedosa, Manitoba, Canada. Abdul has an older sister named Wendy. As an avid dancer, Abdul was inspired towards a show business career by Gene Kelly in the film Singin' in the Rain.

Abdul began taking dance lessons at an early age in ballet, jazz, and tap. She attended Van Nuys High School, where she was a cheerleader and an honor student. Abdul studied broadcasting at the California State University, Northridge. During her freshman year, she was selected from a pool of 700 candidates for the cheerleading squad of the Los Angeles Lakers NBA basketball team—the famed Laker Girls. Within a year, she became head choreographer. She remained with the Laker Girls until 1986.

Career 1982–1986: Career beginnings Abdul was discovered by the Jacksons, after a few of the band members had watched her while attending a Los Angeles Lakers game. She was signed to do the choreography for the video to their single "Torture". The success of the choreography in the video led to Abdul's career as choreographer of music videos, notably Janet Jackson's "What Have You Done for Me Lately", "Nasty", "When I Think of You" and "Control" videos. It was also due to the success of the video that Abdul was chosen to be the choreographer for the Jacksons' Victory tour.

1987–1999: Forever Your Girl, Spellbound and Head over Heels

In 1987, Abdul used her savings to make a singing demo. Soon thereafter, she was signed to the newly formed Virgin Records America by Jeff Ayeroff, who had worked in marketing at A&M Records with Janet Jackson. Although she was a skilled dancer and choreographer, Abdul was a relatively untrained singer, and worked with various coaches and record producers to develop her vocal ability. She has a mezzo-soprano vocal range. Ayeroff recalled signing Abdul to a recording contract years later, stating: "She said, 'I can sing, you know. I want to do an album.' Paula's in our industry. Here's someone with a personality and she's gorgeous, and she can dance. If she can sing, she could be a star. So she went into the studio and cut a demo record and she could sing."

Abdul's debut studio album, Forever Your Girl (1988), would become the most successful debut album in history at that time, reaching number one on the Billboard 200 chart after 64 weeks (where it would spend 10 weeks at number one), and set a record for the most singles from a debut album to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the United States, with four: "Straight Up", "Forever Your Girl", "Cold Hearted", and "Opposites Attract". The album was later certified 7× platinum by the RIAA. A remix album, Shut Up and Dance: Mixes, was also released and reached number seven in the United States, becoming one of the most successful remix albums to date. At the 32nd Grammy Awards, Abdul won her first Grammy for Best Music Video for "Opposites Attract". She was also nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Straight Up", but lost to Bonnie Raitt's "Nick of Time". A jury sided with Abdul and the label two years later in 1993, rejecting Marine's claim to credit and copyright compensation.

Abdul saw continued success with her second studio album Spellbound (1991), which saw two additional number-one singles: "Rush Rush" and "The Promise of a New Day". A third single "Blowing Kisses in the Wind" reached number six for three consecutive weeks. Spellbound retained the dance-pop sound from Forever Your Girl and introduced elements of R&B, and sold 7 million copies worldwide. The music video for "Rush Rush" featured a Rebel Without a Cause motif, starring Keanu Reeves in the James Dean role. The album's other singles, "Vibeology" and "Will You Marry Me?", saw moderate success on the Billboard Hot 100, reaching the top 20. In 1991, Abdul starred in a popular Diet Coke commercial in which she danced with a digital image of her idol, a young Gene Kelly. Abdul was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in December 1991. Abdul promoted Spellbound through the Under My Spell Tour, which was named by an MTV contest for fans. The tour was nearly cancelled due to an accident during rehearsals, but began on schedule in October 1991 and concluded in August 1992. Her third studio album, Head over Heels (1995), retained both pop and R&B elements and saw moderate commercial success, peaking at number 18 on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States and later becoming her lowest-selling release. In 1995, Abdul released a dance workout video entitled Paula Abdul's Get Up and Dance! (re-released on DVD in 2003), a fast-paced, hip-hop style workout. In 1997, Abdul co-wrote a song called "Spinning Around" with record producer and composer Kara DioGuardi, which was intended to be her comeback single from a new album, but the plan never materialized and the song was later given to Kylie Minogue. That year, Abdul appeared in the ABC television film Touched By Evil, playing a businesswoman who discovers that her boyfriend is a serial rapist. In 1998, she released a second workout video called Cardio Dance (re-released on DVD in 2000). Thereafter, Abdul served as the choreographer for several film and theater productions, including the 1998 musical Reefer Madness and the cheerleading scenes in American Beauty (1999).

2000–2009: American Idol, Hey Paula and return to music In 2000, Virgin Records, with whom Abdul was already no longer affiliated, released the first of two compilation albums by Abdul, Paula Abdul: Greatest Hits. Abdul co-produced the 2001 pilot for Skirts, an MTV television series about a high school cheerleading squad; Abdul was also set to appear as the head coach. The pilot never aired. In 2002, she began appearing as one of three judges on the Fox reality competition series American Idol, where she won praise as a sympathetic and compassionate judge and mentor. She seemed especially kind compared to fellow judge Simon Cowell, who was often blunt in his appraisals of the contestants' performances. When she realized that Cowell's over-the-top judging style was heartbreaking for many young contestants, Abdul was horrified and she considered leaving the series. Although their differences often resulted in heated on-air exchanges and confrontations, Cowell says he played a major role in convincing Abdul not to leave the series. While serving as a judge on American Idol, Abdul accepted a second assignment as reporter for Entertainment Tonight. In December 2005, Abdul launched a cheerleading/fitness/dance DVD series called Cardio Cheer, which is marketed to children and teenage girls involved with cheerleading and dance. Abdul also choreographed The King's touchdown celebration, as seen in a string of Burger King television commercials that aired during the 2005–06 NFL season. In 2006, Abdul appeared on the third series of The X Factor UK as a guest judge during the auditions, sitting alongside judges Cowell, Sharon Osbourne and Louis Walsh.

A second compilation album, Greatest Hits: Straight Up!, was released in 2007 by the Virgin label, who also made all of Abdul's releases under their label available for digital download on iTunes. That year, Bravo began airing a reality television series centered around Abdul, Hey Paula, which followed her through her day-to-day life. Abdul's behavior as depicted on the series was described as "erratic" by comedian Rosie O'Donnell and was criticized by audiences and critics, and Hey Paula was cancelled after a single season.

In 2007, Paula Abdul Jewelry launched its nationwide consumer debut on QVC, with the tagline "fashion jewelry designed with heart and soul." Abdul's first QVC appearance resulted in 15 sellouts of her first jewelry collection involving more than 34,000 pieces. In 2008, Abdul returned to music charts for the first time in nearly thirteen years with the single "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow", the first track on the album Randy Jackson's Music Club Vol. 1. The song debuted on On Air with Ryan Seacrest, and Abdul performed it during the pre-game show for Super Bowl XLII. "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" was a modest comeback hit for Abdul, peaking at number 62 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 2 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart. The moderate success led to reports of Abdul beginning work on a new album, but this never materialized. Abdul also made a brief guest appearance on an episode of the British television series Hotel Babylon, which aired in the United Kingdom in February 2008.

In January 2009, Abdul hosted "RAH!," a cheerleading competition on MTV. "RAH!" featured five collegiate squads competing in a series of challenges with Abdul crowning one the winner. In May 2009, Abdul debuted her latest original song to date, "I'm Just Here for the Music" (originally an unreleased song from Kylie Minogue's ninth album Body Language) on the Ryan Seacrest Radio KIIS-FM show and performed the single on the American Idol. "I'm Just Here for the Music" reached number 87 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Abdul's fifteenth song to appear on the chart.

In an interview with the Los Angeles Times in July 2009, Abdul's manager David Sonenberg told the newspaper that, "Very sadly, it does not appear that she's going to be back on Idol." This came about as a result of stalled negotiations between Abdul and the series. In August, after numerous contract negotiations, Abdul confirmed that she would not return to Idol for its ninth season. The Times cited reports Abdul had been earning as much as $5 million per season and that she was reportedly seeking as much as $20 million to return. Abdul was replaced by Ellen DeGeneres. Abdul claimed her departure from Idol was not about money, but that she had to stand on principle.

2010–2015: Live to Dance, The X Factor and So You Think You Can Dance In January 2010, Abdul presented a Lifetime Achievement Award to choreographer Julie McDonald at the 11th Anniversary show of The Carnival: Choreographer's Ball. In November, Abdul launched and co-founded AuditionBooth.com, a website that allows aspiring talents to connect with casting directors, producers, and managers.

In January 2011, Abdul began appearing on the short-lived CBS reality competition series Live to Dance, where she was also an executive producer. Abdul said that unlike American Idol, Live to Dance is less about "competition" and more about "celebration". After its first season of seven episodes, it was cancelled by CBS. In May 2011, it was announced that Abdul would rejoin Cowell on the first season of the American edition of The X Factor. In January 2012, Abdul announced that she would not return as a judge for the series' second season. Abdul was replaced by Demi Lovato. In October 2012, Abdul served as a guest judge during week four of the All-Stars version of Dancing with the Stars. In April 2013, Abdul appeared on the Top 5 results show of season 12 of American Idol to compliment contestant Candice Glover on her performance of "Straight Up".

On July 9, 2013, Abdul was a guest judge on So You Think You Can Dance (season ten). In October 2013, Abdul was named as a judge on the revamped So You Think You Can Dance Australia, which aired on Australia's Network Ten from February 9 through May 1, 2014. Abdul was present as a permanent member of the judge's panel for all episodes of this season. She later became a permanent judge of the American version starting with its twelfth season. In January 2017, Abdul announced that she would not be returning as a judge for its fourteenth season because of her tour schedule.

In April 2014, Abdul was a guest judge on RuPaul's Drag Race (episode "Queens of Talk"), which reunited her with previous Idol contestant Adore Delano. In June 2014, Abdul made a cameo appearance on the Australian soap opera Neighbours and shared scenes with established character Karl Kennedy (Alan Fletcher). In 2015, Abdul made a guest appearance on the comedy sitcom Real Husbands of Hollywood on its season 4 premiere. She was shown in a comedic scene with Arsenio Hall where she was trying to kick Hall out of her pool house. On November 16, 2015, Abdul along with Charles "Chucky" Klapow, Renee Richie, and Nakul Dev Mahajan won the World Choreography Award for Outstanding Choreography Digital Format for the video 'Check Yourself'. On November 22, 2015, Abdul and Donnie Wahlberg presented Favorite Female Artist – Pop/Rock at the 43rd American Music Awards; the award Abdul won at the 1990 AMAs, presented to her by Wahlberg.

2016–present: Return to performing, Las Vegas residency On August 6, 2016, Abdul performed a full headline set for the first time in 26 years at the Mixtape Festival in Hershey, Pennsylvania. In November 2016, New Kids on the Block announced that Abdul would be touring with them and Boyz II Men on their Total Package Tour in 2017; her first tour in 25 years. The tour began on May 12 in Columbus, Ohio, and concluded on July 16, 2017, in Hollywood, Florida, for a total of 47 shows. In an interview with Elle magazine, Abdul stated there were "many reasons" she decided to return to the stage after over two decades, saying: "I took a long break and had sustained some injuries in the past. Then I returned to television with American Idol and that took up a good decade of my life. Then I went out to do some more television, as well. I always wanted to get back on stage, because I missed it. I wanted to get back in close contact with the people who have supported me all throughout my career and be able to see them again. Plus, I was getting asked all the time if I would ever do it again! I finally said, You know what, I want to and I'm going to make it a priority. I'm really passionate about it and it's fun, and I want to connect with my fans around the country."

In July 2018, Abdul announced that she would embark on a solo headlining tour across North America that fall, entitled Straight Up Paula!, as part of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of her debut studio album Forever Your Girl. The tour began in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on October 18 and concluded in Los Angeles, California, on June 7, 2019, for a total of 25 shows. On May 1, 2019, Abdul announced her first Las Vegas residency, Paula Abdul: Forever Your Girl. The residency's first leg began on August 13, the first of 20 dates, ending in January 2020. On June 7, 2019, Abdul opened LA Pride.

Abdul also performed at the fourteenth series finale of America's Got Talent with Light Balance Kids, Brian King Joseph, and Tyler Butler-Figueroa to surprise Cowell. In October 2020, it was announced that Abdul would serve as a panelist for Fox's reality competition, The Masked Dancer. In April 2021, ABC announced that Abdul would return to American Idol as a guest-judge while Luke Bryan was out sick after being diagnosed with COVID-19. She returned as a guest judge on Dancing with the Stars for Music Video Night in its 32nd season. In 2023, Abdul joined the producing team of the Broadway musical How to Dance in Ohio. She also appeared as a contestant on Celebrity Wheel of Fortune. In 2024, Abdul co-headlines The Magic Summer Tour. Her Straight Up! to Canada Tour that was scheduled to commence in September 2024 has since been cancelled.

On 2 March 2025, Abdul was a panel judge in the first round of the tenth series of Let's Dance, a Slovak adaptation of Strictly Come Dancing, presented by TV Markíza. The show was broadcast from Incheba in Bratislava, Slovakia.

Personal life

Relationships Abdul married actor Emilio Estevez in 1992, and filed for divorce in 1994. In 1995, Abdul stated that the reason for their divorce was that she wanted children and Estevez, who had two children from a previous relationship, did not. Abdul married clothing designer Brad Beckerman in 1996, at the New England Carousel Museum in Bristol, Connecticut. They filed for divorce in 1998, after 17 months of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences.

Beliefs Abdul is observant in her Jewish faith, and is proud of her heritage. She once stated, "My father is a Syrian Jew whose family immigrated to Brazil. My mother is Canadian with Jewish roots. My dream is to go to Israel for a real holiday." In November 2006, when Israeli Tourism Minister Isaac Herzog invited her to Israel, Abdul responded with a hug, adding, "I will come; you have helped me make a dream come true." In 2013, at the age of 51, Abdul had her bat mitzvah in Safed, Israel, at the International Center for Tzfat Kabbalah, a museum and spiritual retreat for the study of Kabbalah – Jewish mysticism. In 2003, Abdul was reported as a practitioner of Transcendental Meditation.

Abdul is a dog lover who raised awareness about National Guide Dog Month in May 2009, and she teamed up with Dick Van Patten to help people with blindness to have more independence through the help of guide dogs. She does not wear real fur.

Health Abdul has claimed that she was seriously injured in a plane crash in Iowa in 1992 during her Under My Spell Tour, necessitating fifteen cervical spinal surgeries. The accuracy of her claim has been questioned by some publications, such as Jezebel, in part because the National Transportation Safety Board, which is tasked with investigating all aviation accidents in the United States, has no record of an accident matching Abdul's description. She discussed the diagnosis in response to allegations of drug use. "According to Abdul, the man at the party argued with her, grabbed her by the arm and threw her against a wall," Vernon said. "She said she had sustained a concussion and spinal injuries."

Allegations of drug use Substance abuse allegations arose as the result of what some described as "erratic behavior" Abdul's publicist attributed this to fatigue and technical difficulties during the recording of the interviews. In February 2007, Abdul told Us Weekly that she had never been drunk or used illegal drugs, and called the allegations "lies".

In May 2009, Ladies' Home Journal posted an article on its website that said that Abdul told them she stayed at the La Costa Resort and Spa in Carlsbad, California, for three days the previous year to recover from physical dependence on prescription pain medications. The medications, prescribed due to injuries and her RSD diagnosis, included a pain patch, nerve medication, and a muscle relaxant. According to the article, Abdul said the medications made her "get weird" at times and that she suffered from physical withdrawal symptoms during her recovery.

2004 car crash In December 2004, Abdul was driving her Mercedes-Benz on a Los Angeles-area freeway when she changed lanes and hit another vehicle, but did not stop or render assistance. The driver and passenger took a photograph with a cell phone camera and wrote down the license plate number of the car, which was traced to Abdul. In March 2005, Abdul was fined US$900 and given 24 months of informal probation after pleading nolo contendere (no contest) to misdemeanor hit-and-run driving. She was ordered to pay US$775 for damage to the other car.

2005 accusations by Corey Clark In May 2005, ABC's Primetime Live reported claims by season 2 American Idol contestant Corey Clark that he and Abdul had had an affair during that season, and that she had coached him on how to succeed in the competition. Some considered Clark's timing suspicious as he was marketing a CD and trying to get a book deal, but Clark said that his career was being prejudiced because of his relationship with Abdul, and that is why he came forward with the information to clear his name. stating, "It was just somebody using her to get a lot of publicity for an appalling record, full stop." Abdul appeared in a Saturday Night Live skit, making light of the situation. In August 2005, the Fox network confirmed that Abdul would be returning to the show, as the investigation had found "insufficient evidence that the communications between Mr. Clark and Ms. Abdul in any way aided his performance".

2008 stalking incident On November 11, 2008, a 30-year-old woman named Paula Goodspeed was found dead in her car outside of Abdul's Los Angeles-area home. The death was ruled a suicide by drug overdose, and she was found surrounded by prescription pills, along with photos and CDs of Abdul. Goodspeed was an obsessive fan of Abdul, having legally changed her name to Paula, drawn many pictures of her, sent her flowers and auditioned for Abdul on season 5 of American Idol in 2005 at a stop in Austin, Texas, before being dismissed from the show. Goodspeed had been accused in the press of being a celebrity stalker but her relatives disputed the claim.

2023 sexual assault lawsuit against Nigel Lythgoe On December 29, 2023, Abdul filed a lawsuit accusing producer Nigel Lythgoe of sexual assault when they worked together on American Idol in the 2000s. Lythgoe denied the allegations. It was reported in December 2024 that the case had been settled. Abdul commented on the settlement, "I am grateful that this chapter has successfully come to a close and is now something I can now put behind me," while expressing optimism that her experience could inspire women facing similar obstacles.

Discography

Studio albums Forever Your Girl (1988) Spellbound (1991) Head over Heels (1995)

Tours and residencies Headlining Under My Spell Tour (1991–92) Straight Up Paula! (2018–19)

Co-headlining Club MTV Live (1989) Total Package Tour (2017) (with New Kids on the Block and Boyz II Men) The Magic Summer Tour (2024) (with New Kids on the Block and DJ Jazzy Jeff)

Residency Paula Abdul: Forever Your Girl (2019–20)

Filmography

Film Year Title Role Notes 1978 Junior High School Sherry 1983 Private School Cheerleader 1986 A Smoky Mountain Christmas Choreographer TV movie 1987 Can't Buy Me Love Dancer 1991 L.A. Story Roller Skater 1997 Touched By Evil Ellen Collier TV movie 1998 The Waiting Game Amy Fuentes TV movie 1999 Mr. Rock 'n' Roll: The Alan Freed Story Denise Walton TV movie 2002 The Master of Disguise Choreographer 2005 Robots Watch (voice) Romy and Michele: In the Beginning Herself TV movie 2009 Brüno Herself 2018 A Sister's Secret Detective Tupper TV movie 2020 Impractical Jokers: The Movie Herself 2022 Chip 'n Dale: Rescue Rangers Herself 2026Raging MidlifeMary Todd

Television Year Title Role Notes 1988 Soul Train Herself Episode: "New Edition/Paula Abdul" Showtime at the Apollo Herself Episode: "Episode 2.5" & "2.12" 1989 The Tracey Ullman Show Herself Episode: "Episode 3.18" 1990 Going Live! Herself Episode: "Episode 3.30" 1995 Fully Booked Herself Episode: "Episode 1.8" 1996 Muppets Tonight Herself Episode: "Paula Abdul" Cybill Herself Episode: "Lowenstein's Lament" The Single Guy Herself Episode: "Affair" 1998 Saturday Night Live Herself Episode: "David Duchovny/Puff Daddy/Jimmy Page" Spin City Herself Episode: "It Happened One Night" 1999 The Wayans Bros. Sasha Episode: "Dream Girl" All That Herself Episode: "All That Live! (100th Episode)" Chicken Soup for the Soul Herself Episode: "The Window/Cookie Thief/Appointment/All Good Things" Sabrina, the Teenage Witch Herself Episode: "Aging, Not So Gracefully" 2002 Mad TV Herself Episode: "Episode 8.1" Hollywood Squares Herself/Panelist Recurring Guest American Idol Herself/Judge Main Judge: Seasons 1–8 2003 Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway Herself Episode: "Episode 2.3" 2003–06 E! True Hollywood Story Herself Recurring Guest 2004 Driven Herself Episode: "Paula Abdul" The Bernie Mac Show Herself Episode: "That Old Mac Magic" That's So Raven The Host Episode: "The Road to Audition" 2005 Your Total Health Herself Episode: "Episode 2.2" Fashion in Focus Herself Episode: "Big Money Under the Tents" Biography Herself Episode: "Paula Abdul" Dateline NBC Herself Episode: "Episode 13.36" All of Us Herself Episode: "Hollywood Swinging" Saturday Night Live Herself Episode: "Johnny Knoxville/System of a Down" The Contender Herself Episode: "Series Finale" I Love the '80s 3-D Herself 10 episodes Less Than Perfect Kathleen Episode: "Distractions" 2005–07 Family Guy Herself (voice) Guest: Season 4, Recurring Cast: Season 6 2006 The X Factor Herself Recurring Guest: Season 3 2007 Hey Paula Herself Main Cast The Friday Night Project Herself/Guest Host Episode: "Episode 5.6" 2008 RAH! Paula Abdul's Cheerleading Bowl Herself/Host Main Host Hollywood Residential Herself Episode: "The Hotness" Hotel Babylon Herself Episode: "Episode 3.1" 2009 InFANity Herself Episode: "American Idol" Howie Do It Herself Episode: "Episode 1.5" E! Investigates Herself Episode: "Stalkers" VH1 Divas Herself/Host Main Host 2009–2011 Drop Dead Diva Herself Recurring Cast: Seasons 1–32010American IdolHerselfGuest: Season 9 Finale 2011 Live to Dance Herself/Judge Main Judge The X Factor Herself/Judge Main Judge: Season 1 2012 I Will Survive Herself Episode: "Episode 1.14" Dancing with the Stars Season 15 Episode: "Opponents' Choice Week"2013American IdolHerselfGuest: Season 12 2013–2014 RuPaul's Drag Race Season 5 Episode 14: "Reunited"Season 6 Episode 9: "Queens of Talk" 2013–2016 So You Think You Can Dance Herself/Judge Guest Judge: Season 10, Main Judge: Seasons 12–13 2014 So You Think You Can Dance Australia Herself/Judge Main Judge: Season 4 Neighbours Herself Episode: "Episode 1.6910" 2015 Real Husbands of Hollywood Herself Episode: "Suck My Trick" Strictly Come Dancing Herself Episode: "Week Four" 2016American IdolHerselfGuest: Season 15 Finale Herself Episode: "How to Survive Insufficient Funds" Lip Sync Battle Herself Episode: "Channing Tatum vs. Jenna Dewan-Tatum" Bookaboo Herself Episode: "Bookaboo's Barkin' New Year's Eve" 2017 Fresh Off the Boat Holly Episode: "Do You Hear What I Hear?" 2018 Impractical Jokers: After Party Herself Episode: "Bull Shiatsu" The X Factor Herself/Adviser Episode: "Judges' Houses 1" 2019 America's Got Talent Herself Episode: "Live Results Finale" 2020 Celebrity Ghost Stories Herself Episode: "Paula Abdul" Impractical Jokers: Dinner Party Herself Episode: "The Backyard Cookout Episode" 2020–21 The Masked Dancer Herself/Panelist Main Panelist 2021American IdolHerself/JudgeGuest Judge: Season 19 For Real: The Story of Reality TV Herself Episode: "Make It Work" Secret Celebrity Renovation Herself Episode: "Paula Abdul" The Movies That Made Us Herself Episode: "Coming to America" Superstar Herself Episode: "George Michael" I Can See Your Voice Herself/Panelist Episode: "Holiday Spectacular: Debbie Gibson, Nicole Byer, Paula Abdul, Cheryl Hines, Adrienne Houghton" The Greatest AtHome Videos Herself Episode: "Let Paula Be the Judge" 2022American IdolHerselfGuest: Season 20 Janet Jackson Herself Episode: "Part 2 & 4" Bling Empire Herself Episode: "Adieu ma Chérie" American Rescue Dog Show Herself/Judge Main Judge Made for Love Anydoors Recurring Cast: Season 2 2023 The Muppets Mayhem Herself Episode: "Track 7: Eight Days a Week" Luann & Sonja: Welcome to Crappie Lake Herself Episode: 2 episodes Hell's Kitchen Herself Chef's table guest diner for the red team; Episode: "Just Bring the DARN Fish!" Dancing with the Stars Episode: "Music Video Night" Celebrity Wheel of Fortune Herself Contestant 2024The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills Herself Episode: "Bitter Pill to Swallow"Impractical JokersHerselfEpisode: "Paula Abdul" 2025 Canada's Drag Race Season 6 Episode 1: "Not Sorry Aboot It" 2026Impractical Jokers HerselfEpisode: "Celebrity Crushed"

Choreography + Music Videos Year Artist Music Video 1984 The Jacksons "Torture" 1986 Janet Jackson "What Have You Done for Me Lately" "Nasty" "When I Think of You" "Control" ZZ Top "Velcro Fly" Toto "Till The End" Duran Duran "Notorious" The Pointer Sisters "Goldmine" 1987 Angela Winbush "Run to Me" Debbie Gibson "Shake Your Love" 1988 Steve Winwood "Roll with It" INXS "Devil Inside" Taylor Dayne "Prove Your Love" George Michael "Monkey" 2014 Avon "Check Yourself"

+ Tours Year Artist Tour 1984 The Jacksons "Victory Tour" 1987 Kool & the Gang 1988 George Michael "The Faith Tour"

+ Movies Year Title Notes 1983 Private School 1986 A Smoky Mountain Christmas 1987 The Tracey Ullman Show Won an Emmy Award Dragnet Can't Buy Me Love The Running Man 1988 Action Jackson Coming To America Big Bull Durham 1989 She's Out of Control Dance to Win The Karate Kid Part III 1990 17th American Music Awards Won an Emmy for her own performance, "(It's Just) The Way That You Love Me" 62nd Academy Awards "Under the Sea" from 'The Little Mermaid' and "Best Costume Design" category 1991 The Doors Val Kilmer's choreographer 1996 Jerry Maguire 1999 American Beauty 2001 Black Knight Reefer Madness Off-Broadway 2003 Zoe's Dance Moves 2009 American Idol Season 8-Disco Week (Results Show) 2022 1660 Vine

Awards and nominations