"You can't sugarcoat s**t, pardon me," Simmons said about his anti-coddling approach to The Hollywood Reporter. "You can mentor anyone you like, but it's a waste of time if they don't have the goods intrinsically.

"We want to open the trap doors of life and get tough. There will be heartbreak, and people are going to cry and their dreams will be shattered, just like in real life."

In other words, expect more of a Simon Cowell than a Paula Abdul when it comes to Simmons' judging persona. "We want to create superstars, not just singers that get record deals," Simmons said.