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Nashville Star is an American reality television singing competition program that aired for six seasons, from 2003 to 2008. Its first five seasons aired on USA Network, while the last season aired on NBC. Its five seasons on USA made it the longest-running competition series on cable television at the time. In Canada, the show aired on CMT through season 5, but moved to E! beginning with season 6. CMT in the United States reaired each episode in season 6.
It was similar to American Idol, in that performers had to sing to impress both celebrity judges and the public via call-in and/or internet votes. Unlike American Idol, however, the performers were limited to country music. This restriction was relaxed for Season 6, allowing for the finalists to choose from many genres of music, but the songs were arranged to maintain a country sound.
The show is credited with jump-starting the careers of singers Buddy Jewell, Miranda Lambert, Chris Young, and Kacey Musgraves among others. A Nashville Star-themed gifts and souvenirs shop featuring local items and city souvenirs opened in July 2008 at Nashville International Airport, one month before the show's final episode, and closed after over a decade.
However, because Nashville Star aired only once per week, eliminations were not announced until the following week. The finalists who have not been eliminated are called in random order to the stage one by one to perform until there are only two remaining. At that point, one was called to perform and the other was eliminated for receiving the fewest votes from the previous week. The finalists did not know the order in which they would perform and had less than one minute to prepare once their names were called. No votes are tallied on the season finale.
Much like American Idol, the judges were present to offer criticism to the finalists in an attempt to sway the voting public. Unlike Idol, however, Nashville Star's judges did not participate in the preliminary auditions (leaving that task to the show's producers), but they did act as mentors to the finalists (beginning with the 2008 season). The audition process was not seen on-air on USA Network versions, except for the first season (2003 season), but portions of it was seen in a montage during the premiere of the NBC version. Beginning with the 2008 move to NBC, the judges did assist producers in narrowing the field from 50 to 12. Each season (except for 2005), the judges eliminated finalists based on consensus on the premiere episode without sending the vote to the public (the process continued for a few more episodes during the first two seasons).
Whereas American Idol generally elevated people off the street to stardom, Nashville Star finalists were usually already somehow involved in the country music industry, but may not have attained a record deal on a major record label. Past finalists have included studio musicians, background singers, and independent artists. Finalists were usually songwriters, in addition to being singers. In each season, one episode was dedicated to songs written by the finalists. Nashville Star did not have the same age limits as American Idol, and performers in their 30s and 40s were finalists, although most were in their 20s.
Nashville Star always featured a live band, led by John Bohlinger.
In 2007, five days after Jewel's debut as the new host of Nashville Star, she appeared as a guest judge on the season premiere of American Idol. The Idol segments, however, were taped several weeks before she was named host of Nashville Star.
Finalists lived together for the entire run of the show. During the first two seasons, the finalists lived in a large house near Nashville's Music Row. Beginning with the 2005 season, finalists shared a large suite at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center. Excerpts of the finalists' interaction with each other in their living environment were often edited into the show.
In addition, most episodes included an established country music act making a guest appearance to perform a song.
Nashville Star was produced by Reveille Productions and originated live (except for each season's premiere episode, which was taped) from the now-demolished Acuff Theatre at the Opry Entertainment Complex in Nashville, Tennessee. The competition took place over the months of March and April in its first four seasons, though it moved to January and February for the 2007 season and to the summer months in 2008.
Fifth-season judge Blake Shelton told the New York Times, "I think it's disastrous that there hasn't been a winner to go on to be a consistent star in Nashville. In order for the show to have credibility and for it to take another step, we need a Carrie Underwood to come out of it." Despite this, the show was a ratings hit for USA Network, and was moved to broadcast network television after five seasons.
In 2005, finalist Tamika Tyler blamed producers for attempting to influence fans to vote against her, after she was voted off on an early-season episode. Tyler claims that video clips of a confrontation between her and eventual winner Erika Jo concerning the difference in their ages were doctored and taken out of context as they were presented on the show. The show's producers would refute the claims; however, in 2006, the focus of the videos shifted from interactions between finalists to a behind-the-scenes look at each finalist preparing for his or her performance.
During the fifth episode of the 2007 season, no finalist was eliminated. However, host Jewel teased an elimination several times from the beginning of the episode, only to reveal at the very end that the previous week's show experienced "technical difficulties" and the voting results were discarded. Neither USA Network nor Reveille Productions, would comment publicly on the "technical difficulties". Had the show eliminated a finalist that week, the finale episode would have only featured two performers, instead of the usual three.
As stated below and on this page, the winner of season 6 was supposed to perform at the closing ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, China, which was also shown on NBC in the U.S. However, that performance did not occur; no reason was ever given for the cancellation.
| + Nashville Star hosts |
| 2 (2004) |
| Sara Evans substituted for Rimes during episodes 7 and 8 due to Vocal folds injury; Cledus T. Judd was co-host, but was credited as "Special Correspondent". |
| Cowboy Troy was co-host; Two Foot Fred hosted "Small Talk" segment. |
| Jewel |
| Katie Cook was co-host, but credited as "Correspondent". |
| + Nashville Star judges |
| Charlie Robison |
| The Warren Brothers |
| Bret Michaels |
| Weekly guest judgeA |
| Blake Shelton |
| Jewel |
A Weekly guest judges during 2006 mostly included bona fide musicians, but also included comedian Larry the Cable Guy and wrestler John Cena who both appeared in character for promotional consideration.
| + Nashville Star winners |
| Brandi Gibson |
| Lance Miller |
| Jayron Weaver |
| Matt Mason |
| Joshua Stevens |
| Coffey Anderson |
The standings for 2003 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (May 3, 2003) |
| Finale (May 3, 2003) |
| Week 8 (April 26, 2003) |
| Week 7 (April 19, 2003) |
| Week 6 (April 12, 2003) |
| Week 5 (April 5, 2003) |
| Week 4 (March 29, 2003) (judges' decision) |
| Week 4 (March 29, 2003) |
| Week 3 (March 22, 2003) (judges' decision) |
| Week 3 (March 22, 2003) |
| Week 2 (March 15, 2003) (judges' decision) |
The first winner of Nashville Star, in the spring of 2003, was 41-year-old Buddy Jewell. On the strength of his win, Jewell's self-titled album released via Columbia Records earned him a gold album and two top-five country hits in "Help Pour Out the Rain (Lacey's Song)" and "Sweet Southern Comfort", both at No. 3. With the release of a second album, Times Like These, Jewell saw declining sales and was dropped from the label. Dear Friends, Buddyjewel.com. Retrieved 14 December 2015. That season's runner-up, John Arthur Martinez, has released several independently produced albums, and one under a major banner.
Miranda Lambert finished third. Her debut album, Kerosene, debuted on the Billboard country albums chart at No. 1 upon its 2005 release, and with a platinum certification from the RIAA, it is the best-selling album from a Nashville Star contestant. Her second album, Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, is certified platinum too and has produced three more Top 20 hits, one of which ("Gunpowder & Lead") reached No. 7 in 2008. Her third album, Revolution, which is also certified platinum, gave her her first No. 1 "The House That Built Me". At the 2010 Academy of Country Music Awards, Lambert won three awards, including Top Female Vocalist, Video of the Year for 'White Liar' and Album of the Year for 'Revolution'. She has also been named Female Vocalist of the Year at the Academy of Country Music Awards and Country Music Association Awards for seven consecutive years (2010 to 2016). She is widely considered to be the most successful contestant in the history of the show; although Season 4 winner Chris Young has more No. 1 country singles (nine) than Lambert (four), Lambert has more No. 1 country albums (six) than Young (two).
The standings for 2004 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (May 1, 2004) |
| Finale (May 1, 2004) |
| Week 8 (April 24, 2004) |
| Week 7 (April 17, 2004) |
| Week 6 (April 10, 2004) |
| Week 5 (April 3, 2004) |
| Week 5 (April 3, 2004) |
| Week 3 (March 20, 2004) (judges' decision) |
| Week 3 (March 20, 2004) |
| Week 2 (March 13, 2004) (judges' decision) |
Nashville Star began its second season on March 6, 2004. In 2004, the winner was 33-year-old Brad Cotter, who enjoyed very limited success after his win. Cotter was one of ten finalists eliminated by the judges on the first episode, but was allowed back into the competition after he was selected by viewers to be the one of those ten saved. The format was changed after the 2004 season and that element of the competition was scrapped.
Cotter won a recording contract with Sony Music on its Epic Records label. His first album, Patient Man, performed poorly, selling less than 140,000 copies. He was subsequently dropped from the roster. Cotter remains on tour opening for other country artists, such as Mark Chesnutt and Restless Heart.
However, runner-up George Canyon (also 33 years old) experienced a result similar to Miranda Lambert. He did not win a record deal from the show and has not achieved success in the U.S., but he has become a country music star in his native Canada, where he was signed by Universal Music and has released three successful albums.
Following the season, third-place finisher Matt Lindahl began appearing in television, radio, billboard, and print advertisements for Purity Dairies, a regional dairy company based in Nashville. In the television and radio ads, Lindahl (along with his band) sings, acts, and plays the washboard - an instrument that he also played on Nashville Star.
In 2007, Lance Miller signed with Warner Bros. Records and appeared on Star to perform his first single.
Sixth-place finisher Brent Keith was a top 36 semi-finalist on the eighth season of American Idol, but was not voted through to the finals.
The standings for 2005 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (April 26, 2005) |
| Finale (April 26, 2005) |
| Week 8 (April 19, 2005) |
| Week 7 (April 12, 2005) |
| Week 6 (April 5, 2005) |
| Week 5 (March 29, 2005) |
| Week 4 (March 22, 2005) |
| Week 3 (March 15, 2005) |
| Week 2 (March 8, 2005) |
The 2005 winner was 18-year-old Erika Jo from Mount Juliet, Tennessee — the first female and youngest overall winner. Her victory was watched by the show's largest-ever USA Network audience, when over three million people tuned in to see the finale on April 26. It marked the first time the show ranked among the top ten cable shows of the week.
Erika Jo's self-titled album debuted at No. 5 on the country album charts, but quickly fell out of the top ten, selling just over 118,000 copies in the year following its release. The video for the first single, "I Break Things", initially received heavy rotation on CMT and GAC, but the song was largely ignored by country radio and only reached No. 53 on the Billboard Magazine country charts. One subsequent single (a cover of Jessi Colter's 1975 hit "I'm Not Lisa") was released, but it also failed to attract substantial attention. She was later dropped from the Universal South roster. Erika Jo occasionally appeared on the Grand Ole Opry shortly following her victory.
Second-place finisher Jason Meadows released an album 100% Cowboy via the independent Baccerstick label in 2008, and although the album charted, none of its three singles did. Fourth place Jayron Weaver went on to form with Delnora Reed a duo named Blue-Eyed Grass.
Phil Vassar and Anastasia Brown returned as regular judges, with a third seat occupied by guest judges, which included:
The standings for 2006 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (May 2, 2006) |
| Finale (May 2, 2006) |
| Week 7 (April 25, 2006) |
| Week 6 (April 18, 2006) |
| Week 5 (April 11, 2006) |
| Week 4 (April 4, 2006) |
| Week 3 (March 28, 2006) |
| Week 2 (March 21, 2006) |
| Premiere (March 14, 2006) (judges' decision) |
The 2006 winner was 20-year-old Chris Young. Nashville Star began its fourth season on March 14, 2006, with a slightly altered set, two new hosts in Wynonna & Cowboy Troy, and only two regular judges. A guest judge occupied the third seat each week. The format remained unaltered, though the length of the season was reduced by one week, and one finalist was eliminated on the season premiere (by judges' decision) to compensate. Two Foot Fred's "Small Talk" segment also made its debut in 2006. The season ended on May 2, 2006, with Young—from nearby Murfreesboro, Tennessee—crowned champion. His self-titled debut album was released on October 3, 2006, and debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard country chart, although its singles both missed Top 40. Young charted in the Top 40 for the first time in 2008 with "Voices", and reached number one in 2009 with "Gettin' You Home (The Black Dress Song)" and "The Man I Want to Be". "Voices" was then re-released in 2010 and also went on to reach number one. Young also received a Grammy nomination in 2016 for "Think of You" with The Voice contestant Cassadee Pope. Sixth-place finisher Kristen McNamara was a top 36 finalist on the eighth season of American Idol, but was not voted into the Top 13. Fourth-place finisher Matt Mason would go on to win the first season of CMT's Next Superstar.
The standings for 2007 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (March 1, 2007) |
| Finale (March 1, 2007) |
| Week 7 (February 22, 2007) |
| Week 6 (February 15, 2007) |
| Week 4 (February 1, 2007) |
| Week 3 (January 25, 2007) |
| Week 2 (January 18, 2007) |
| Premiere (January 11, 2007) (judges' decision) |
| Premiere (January 11, 2007) (judges' decision) |
The above ten were chosen from over fifty Regional Finalists, selected from local area callbacks and auditions. The Regional Finals were held in Nashville, TN, on November 1–3, 2006, at The Stage.
The 2007 winner of Nashville Star was 29-year-old Angela Hacker from Muscle Shoals, Alabama, who finished just ahead of her younger brother, Zac. It was the first time that siblings had competed, let alone finished in the top two.
The fifth season debuted on USA Network and CMT Canada at 10 pm EST on January 11, 2007. There were several changes to the show, including an earlier start date and a new night. The series moved to January and February, and aired live on Thursdays at 10 pm EST rather than Tuesdays. Jewel replaced Wynonna Judd as host, with Cowboy Troy returning as co-host. The format remained mostly unaltered, except the judges eliminated two finalists (one male, one female) on the premiere episode. Sonic Drive-In was the presenting sponsor for 2007. The season finale aired on March 1, 2007.
Following the season, Angela Hacker's album The Winner Is Angela Hacker was released on Warner Bros. Records. The album, composed of cover song demos she recorded while on the show, was only available at Walmart. She also appeared on Cowboy Troy's Black in the Saddle album, singing guest vocals on "Hick Chick". She left Warner in August 2008 without releasing any singles.
Fifth-placer Whitney Duncan, who had previously charted the duet "My World Is Over" with Kenny Rogers in 2004, signed to Warner as well, charting with "When I Said I Would". Her debut album, Right Road Now, was first slated for release in mid-2008, but was delayed repeatedly due to poor performance of its singles. It was eventually released in early 2010, and Duncan soon after parted ways with the record label. Duncan would later compete in the CBS reality series and finished in 9th place. She would later participate in another CBS reality series The Amazing Race 25, with her fellow Survivor contestant and fiancé Keith Tollefson; they finished in 8th place.
Kacey Musgraves, who finished in seventh place, signed with Mercury Records in 2012 and released her debut single, "Merry Go 'Round", which was a top 20 country hit. Her major-label debut, Same Trailer Different Park, was released on March 19, 2013. It reached number 1 on the country albums chart and number 2 on the Billboard 200, and won the Academy of Country Music award for Album of the Year, and also the Grammy Award for Best Country Album. Her second major-label release, Pageant Material (2015), was nominated for Best Country Album at the 58th Grammy Awards. Her first Christmas-themed album, A Very Kacey Christmas, was released on October 28, 2016. Her fourth studio album, Golden Hour (2018), won four Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Best Country Album.
Season 6 of Nashville Star premiered on NBC on June 9, 2008, at 9PM Eastern/Pacific. Its heavily-promoted first broadcast, a two-hour premiere, earned a 2.2 rating, its first hour finishing fourth and its second hour finishing second among the four major networks. Despite the relatively low ratings for a network show, the premiere attracted the most viewers for a single episode in the show's history, outdrawing all episodes broadcast on USA Network. The second episode lost 18 percent of its debut audience. The show during season 6 placed fourth in the first hour and placed second overall in the second hour of the broadcast. Billy Ray Cyrus hosted the sixth season. The winner of the first-ever NBC season was 32-year-old Melissa Lawson.
The finalists for 2008 were:
| Week eliminated |
| Winner |
| Finale (August 4, 2008) |
| Finale (August 4, 2008) |
| Week 8 (July 28, 2008) |
| Week 7 (July 21, 2008) |
| Week 6 (July 14, 2008) |
| Week 5 (July 7, 2008) |
| Week 5 (July 7, 2008) |
| Week 4 (June 30, 2008) |
| Week 3 (June 23, 2008) |
| Week 2 (June 16, 2008) |
| Premiere (June 9, 2008) (judges' decision) |
The sixth season featured judges Jeffrey Steele, John Rich, and Jewel (who hosted Season Five). For the first time, the judges also acted as mentors to the finalists, and Rich produced songs later included in the EP, United We Stand. The winner was promised a recording contract with Warner Bros. Records, a Toyota Tundra pickup truck, and the opportunity to perform at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
The sixth season also brought Nashville Star to the American CMT network for the first time. The cable network rebroadcast each episode the following Friday. Beginning with the show's second episode, CMT's Katie Cook joined the show as a correspondent.
For the first time in the show's history, a companion radio show was developed to complement the television program. Nashville Star Radio debuted each Thursday evening on XM's "Highway 16". NSR featured the week's performances from the television show, as well as exclusive in-studio performances and interviews with the finalists and judges. Nashville Star
AT&T became a major sponsor of the show, placing their logo on screen with each finalist's call-in vote line. AT&T sponsored the same service on American Idol. Also, Toyota replaced Chevrolet as a sponsor, and offered its signature Tundra pickup as a prize to the winner.
Guest Performers for the 2008 season included Taylor Swift, Trace Adkins, Danity Kane, and Blake Shelton.
Thirty-two-year-old Melissa Lawson won. Lawson had made it to the Top 75 on season 4 of American Idol. She released a single "What If It All Goes Right" that charted at No. 43 on the US Country charts and No. 79 on the general US chart. Second-placed Gabe Garcia, went on to form the Gabe Garcia Band.
Coffey Anderson (also written Cofféy Anderson), a Los Angeles, California, resident but originally from Bangs, Texas, finished 4th. He had briefly been a contestant on season 2 of American Idol in 2003, making it to the Hollywood round. Coffey Anderson has released four albums: Southern Man, Me and You and the spiritual Christian albums Inspiration Vol. 1 and Worship Unplugged 1. He enjoys huge popularity online, particularly with his compositions "Memphis", "Southern Man", "Rock 'n Roll Sally", "All Ye", "Let me Love You" and "Can I". He also has his own indie label Coffey Entertainment, LLC.
Third-placer Shawn Mayer is currently releasing songs digitally, and fifth-placer Ashlee Hewitt is currently songwriting and working with close friend and fellow country singer Katie Armiger.
With the release of "Teddy Gentry's Best New Nashville" through the Cracker Barrel music program in all 601 Cracker Barrel locations in 42 states, sixth-placer Laura Fedor becomes the first-ever non-major-label-signed artist to be allowed in their music program, and the only artist besides the winner to have a prominent national release on a respected label.
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