ABC/Heidi GutmanLast year, Mariah Carey appeared live from Times Square on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest, but her performance was ruined by technical difficulties. This year, she gets a do-over: Mariah will be back performing on the ABC show Sunday, and hosts Ryan Seacrest and Jenny McCarthy think that’s great.
“It’s a second chance to do what we know she’s known for, and that is amazing performances,” Ryan tells ABC Radio. “Maybe it becomes a tradition: Mariah before midnight!”
“I think everybody deserves a second chance,” Jenny adds. “At first I thought, ‘No Way!’ I thought it was gossip. And then I realized, ‘That’s a beautiful idea. Why not?'”
In addition to the festivities in New York, the show’s Hollywood portion is packed with stars like Shawn Mendes, Charlie Puth and Alessia Cara. But there’s one performer who Ryan’s especially happy about: his old American Idol pal, Kelly Clarkson.
“I saw her a few months ago, just after she signed on to do The Voice, and she said she was worried about how she was going to break it to me,” Ryan admits. “But I said, ‘I’m so happy for anything you get to do!'”
New Year’s Rockin’ Eve will also feature Britney Spears from Vegas, and Imagine Dragons and WALK THE MOON from New Orleans. As Ryan and Jenny explain, there’s never any problem finding stars who want to perform on the iconic show.
“This is one of those [things] where people call to be a part of this show,” says Ryan. “You don’t have to call them…because it’s such a tradition.”
Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest airs Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.
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