Hannah Yasharoff | USA TODAY

Entertain This!, USA TODAY

"American Idol" will look pretty different when it returns this weekend with contestants and judges filming remotely while under quarantine. But fans might recognize one part of the show as a blast from the past.

Longtime host Ryan Seacrest will sit at an old school "Idol" judges' desk, originally used by Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul and Simon Cowell. Seacrest told fans in an Instagram video Wednesday that it had been sitting in storage in his garage.

"I never thought we'd quite use it again, but it's coming in handy again for this Sunday," the host said, noting that he had been rehearsing for the show, which will be pre-taped before airing at 8 EDT/PDT on ABC.

Seacrest's home setup featured a broadcast camera, lighting equipment, two television screens and a light fixture, all with the cursive "Idol" logo on them.

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Contestants, meanwhile, were shipped three of the latest Apple iPhone model to ensure multiple camera angles, plus a professional microphone and a lighting kit. They'll have Zoom sessions with vocal coaches, normally done side by side, and work out arrangements for songs.

The show's seven-piece live band and three backup singers, who normally accompany the performers on a glitzy soundstage in Los Angeles, will instead record arrangements (separately, from their homes) to be played back while the would-be Idols perform songs to be recorded on Fridays. And instead of an audience of cheering fans, the singers' only feedback will come from judges on a Zoom video chat.

Contributing: Gary Levin, USA TODAY.

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