Building a Better Nashville Star

While Nashville Star is now in its sixth season, this is the first year that it has appeared on broadcast network television, appearing on Monday nights on NBC (having been on USA through the first five seasons).  For those who haven’t watched it, Nashville Star is a country music step child of American Idol (hereafter, AI)--which is sort of odd in that Carrie Underwood, one of the current darlings of pop country music, emerged on American Idol. 

While I am a fan of American Idol and a sometimes fan of pop country music, I did not watch Nashville Star until this season.  The set up is similar to AI in that the early show shortens the list of procedures from the masses down to a smaller number (12 in the case of Nashville Star) and the following weeks—all with themes—allow “America” to vote to eliminate one singer each week.  While there are a few minor differences in the format, the show is very similar to AI. 

All in all, it’s an adequate show and fairly entertaining.  While there is no one with the charisma of Simon Cowell, John Rich does a wonderful job as the sarcastic centerpiece in the judges’ chamber.  Country music newcomer, Jewel (yes, for those who haven’t been paying attention, she’s hitting the country charts now) is far more thoughtful and useful than Paula Abdul and singer-songwriter Jeffrey Steele actually gives advice beyond “That was pitchy, dog.”  The singers are hit and miss, just as on Idol, but you can find yourself getting emotionally connected to the show. 

That said, the show does have some glaring problems that, if corrected, could make for a strong rival to American Idol.  Here, then, I propose, five ways to improve Nashville Star:

1. Get rid of Billy Ray Cyrus.  I’m not going to make any old fashioned mullet jokes here or any jabs at Achy Breaky this or that.  The guy has earned his chops with a nice little history of country music and television.  He’s got talent; he’s got staying power.  What he hasn’t got is the ability to ad lib on stage.  It’s a train wreck.  He consistently sounds as if he’s reading nervously off cue cards, and his comments sound insincere and canned.  While I find this somewhat surprising, given this history of stage performance, one never knows how one will react in a different genre.  It was a nice idea, but it’s not working.  Time to let go.
2. Stop copying American Idol quite so much.  While I realize there is only so much one can do with what amounts to a talent show with elimination rounds, the theme format of this is too familiar, and so is the video montage we get each time an artist performs.  We see shots of the singers at home, at rehearsal, with their coaches, preparing.  It appears as if we’re simply watching AI most of the time.  And when Billy Ray is about to announce who has been eliminated, we get the long pause and then the inevitable, “You’ll find out after the break . . .” line.  It’s overused on American Idol, and it reeks of Howie Mandel.  Creativity, folks.  Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but it’s also dull.
3. I don’t know enough about television production to explain this or to offer solutions, but I can offer a critique.  There is something about the show that “looks” and “feels” amateurish.  I know it has a smaller budget than AI, but the camera work, or something, just feels a notch above a local television show. Someone else needs to figure this one out, but the production values have to go up.
4. Focus on country.  When they announced that the theme this week was “Pop goes country,” I rolled my eyes.  There’s nothing wrong with the theme—indeed, it’s interesting to watch these guys translate “Livin’ La Vida Loca” into country.  The problem is, most of the singers have been doing that every week anyway.  I love Coffey, for example, but I don’t think he’s attempted a country song yet.
5. Cut the novelty acts before getting down to the final 12.  We’ve already lost the trio of men who looked as if they came straight from a theme park, and now we need to lose the three women who were working the other side of the park.  This is hokey stuff; it can’t win.  There will be more at stake if the performers seem “real.”

Follow this advice, and I guarantee your ratings will improve.  More importantly, the show will work.