Ryan Seacrest has been the host of since its inception in 2002 — for a total of 21 seasons, and counting! — but there a time when he was actually considered to be a judge alongside Simon Cowell.During an appearance on her eponymous talk show, Kelly Clarkson brought up a fun fact about Seacrest and the singing competition show, telling the 48-year-old TV host that she found out he was originally almost going to be a judge. Seacrest confirmed the nugget and then explained how he became the host.«Yeah, originally when the producers — Nigel [Lythgoe] and Ken [Warwick] — were setting up the show, they had heard me on the radio here in Los Angeles and they thought that I might fit the panel to be up there with whoever else was already on. I guess Simon [Cowell] was already on board and I don’t know who else at that point,» Seacrest explained.