Country Singing: Songwriting Competition Show

Apparently America isn't sick of reality talent shows yet. CMT will be doing an American Idol esque Country Singer show.

He's proven time and time again that the shows he produces are successful, so we doubt that this will be any different!

American Idol executive producer Nigel Lythgoe, and his son, Simon, have teamed up for a brand new country music singing-songwriting competition, called CMT's Next Superstar!

Starting up in April, the ten episode series will feature a cast full of hopefuls traveling around to various locations and recording and writing music inspired by them! The finale will be held at Nashville's Ryman auditorium, and the winner will be announced during the CMT Awards in June, along with their first single!

And in case you were concerned that this sounds a little bit too much like Nashville Star, Simon explains:

"No one episode is the same. We’re changing locations all the time, shooting in Nashville, Memphis and Texas. Every challenge is different. On Nashville Star, they didn’t have media challenges. We’re giving them radio training and putting them through photo shoots and music video challenges. We’re putting them on a tour bus. You're really going to get to know these contestants really well, just by being with them 24-7. We're putting the onus on the contestants, where they can really make the song their own. We will pick the genres and they have to then turn it into a country song, but make it their own. So if they want a fiddle, they can have it. If they want a steel guitar, they've got it. They can go their own their path, but they are responsible for how they perform. We'll give them the tools, they have to take control of it. We're not the run-of-the-mill, studio-based, glitz and glamour show. Similar to Idol, we will have a guest judge each week who specializes in a particular field. If we're shooting a music video, which is one of the challenges, we will show all the backstage stuff, the director, the casting, how they produce it. Then we'll stream it to film students who vote to determine who the bottom two contestants are. Otherwise the judges decide."

And Nigel continues:

"Country music is all about storytelling, personalities and putting yourself into the songs. This show is not about going to a set, it's about being in a location that has history to it. We're down and dirty in the heart of Nashville. It not just going to be another American Idol production, why would I be involved in that? I've got the best. From my point of view, I want to change it up totally."

via perezhilton.com