Katy Perry’s Top Breaks During Live 'American Idol,' Lionel Richie Jokes Luke Bryan Is to Blame (Exclusive)

'American Idol' judge Lionel Richie jokes with ET that he thinks Luke Bryan is to blame for the wardrobe malfunction.

American Idol viewers got more than they bargained for during Monday night's live shows with the top 14! Judge Katy Perry wore a custom Kate Barton silver metallic top for the televised event, but it didn't stay on the whole time.

Partway through the episode, the 39-year-old pop star revealed that the top had busted while she was clapping for contestant Roman Collins' performance of James Brown's "It's a Man's Man's Man's World." 

"That song broke my top off," Perry quipped at the judges' table, hiding behind a pillow. "I guess it is a woman's world."

"Ratings!" judge Luke Bryan quipped. "Here we come, ratings!" 

Live from Hollywood, the Top 20 take the stage again as host Ryan Seacrest reveals the 10 hopefuls America has voted to advance. Judges Luke Bryan, Katy Perry and Lionel Richie select the remaining four who will round out the Top 14. - Disney/Eric McCandless

ET's Denny Directo spoke with Bryan after the live show where he joked about the incident. 

"Tonight, her top flies off, almost flies off. At this point in the game, I'm like, 'What do you need? What do you need? You need a pair of pliers? You need a towel? A bathrobe? What do you need?'" the country crooner quipped. 

Katy Perry on American Idol's live shows. - Disney/Eric McCandless

However, judge Lionel Richie was telling a different story about Bryan's involvement in the incident. 

"Luke knocked the top off, I'll tell you all the truth," Richie joked to ET. "And then Luke spent the rest of the time going, 'I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry.' But he was definitely apologetic and then he tried to put it back together and that looked worse than the whole thing."

Perry herself set the record straight, calling the incident a "moment for television."

"Yeah, he's always setting me up," she said of Bryan. "It wasn't really a malfunction. It was just a moment for television. Every season it seems I rip my pants…. I think it's the physical comedy, the physical expression side of me that just wants to burst at the seams." 

New episodes of American Idol air Sundays and Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC and stream the next day on Hulu. 

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