After serving as a mentor to contestants on American Idol last year, Jelly Roll is taking a more prominent position on the series.

The country star has been named Idol’s first “artist in residence.” It’s a new wrinkle for the show: Jelly Roll will join the show beginning with the Hollywood Week round, where the first cuts for audition round winners take place. ABC says he’ll “work closely with the Idol hopefuls, giving them firsthand advice on how to navigate the journey.”

Jelly Roll is likely well qualified to help contestants navigate sudden stardom. Although he had released songs and albums for close to two decades, first as a hip-hop artist, he didn’t fully break through until his country album Whitsitt Chapel hit No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart in 2023. Last year’s Beautifully Broken went to No. 1.

The addition of the artist in residence position is...