NEW YORK – One of music's harshest critics doesn't think Beyonce (search) is so bootylicious.
Simon Cowell (search), a judge on Fox television's "American Idol," has some choice words about the 23-year-old singer.
"I find the whole Beyonce thing really mystifying," Cowell says in Esquire magazine, on newsstands Friday. "She's not sexy, she hasn't got a great body and she's not a great singer."
But Cowell defends a more maligned figure: Ashlee Simpson (search), who was caught lip-synching on NBC's "Saturday Night Live."
"Why should you have to do something substandard just for the sake of being real? If it sounds better with the vocal you recorded, why shouldn't people listen to that? There's almost a witch-hunt mentality about people miming," he said.
The British talent judge also came out swinging on several other subjects.
On President Bush: "He could almost be a robot."
On marriage: "At the end of the day, it's an incredibly unfair contract."
On France: "We [the British] have hated the French for years. Now you [the United States] have just joined the club. It makes you much more likable."
The fourth season of "American Idol" premiered Tuesday night.
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