Former American Idol judge Randy Jackson was among the stars who appeared at this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW) festival in Austin, Texas.
Jackson, now the band leader for the game show Name That Tune, was on stage during the annual arts festival to discuss A&R and artist Development, a topic he’s quite familiar with.
The 67-year-old television personality is also a musician and record executive.
After starting as a bass guitarist for different musicians, Jackson moved into other areas of the music industry, including production. He eventually worked in A&R for Columbia Records and MCA Records.
That gave him plenty of experience to discuss the specific topics he conversed about at the recent music festival event.
However, he may have raised some concerns about his health while recently speaking on stage.
Jackson makes public appearance at SXSW
During SXSW, Jackson wore a long-sleeved Guns N’ Roses T-shirt, slim grey pants, and black-and-white shoes.
Per The Sun, Jackson reportedly struggled to speak and looked slim after losing weight.
The media outlet indicated that Jackson’s speech was quiet and slow while on stage to discuss A&R.
At another SXSW event, Jackson was shown on stage wearing a long-sleeved white shirt as part of his attire during a group conversation or panel.
The SPIN Twitter account shared a group of images, including one with Jackson sitting to the far left.
Jackson’s appearance has sparked health concerns
Following his successful stint on American Idol, Jackson moved on to other television work, including his latest gig as a bandleader for Fox’s Name That Tune. Jackson also handles announcing duties as the show opens.
He’s appeared on the game show with host Jane Krakowski since 2021, and his appearance has sparked concern among some fans.
A video clip shared earlier this year featured Jackson at the piano during the show. Several commenters reacted to seeing the former Idol judge.
“Is that Randy Jackson!??” one surprised commenter wrote.
“Between the weight loss and plastic surgery Randy Jackson looks like an animatronic or puppet it’s so weird for my brain to process,” another commenter said.
Another commenter asked why he looked “like an Ai Pixar funko pop,” and someone replied to let them know Jackson was “dealing with Type 2 Diabetes” and to “Be kind.”
Per Newsweek, Jackson underwent a gastric bypass surgery in 2003 as part of his attempts to lose weight. In addition, they indicate the beloved TV star and musician has addressed his unbeatable but manageable Type 2 diabetes diagnosis from the early 2000s.
According to the outlet, Jackson’s “life-threatening” diagnosis was the wake-up call he needed to work on better health. He’s continuing to do what he loves while appearing on television with the rebooted Name That Tune.
Name That Tune premieres Monday, June 3 on Fox.
Randy has looked sick for years! Now he looks like he’s about to expire. So very sad.