Nashville Stars

Nashville Star is an American reality TV show which is aired on the USA broadcasting network. The show is also aired in Canada, and there it appears on the CMT network. The first season started in 2003, and it has so far had five seasons, making it one of the most popular reality shows on the network. This show has a number of similarities to American Idol.

The contestants are expected to sing in a way that impresses the judges, who are celebrities. In addition to this, they must impress the public as well. The public gets to vote via the telephone or the Internet. The thing which makes this show distinct from American Idol is that it only allows country music. The winner of the show is given a record deal, a Chevy truck, and a performance at the Grand Ole Opry.

Season One of Nashville Stars

The winner of season one was Buddy Jewell, who was 41 years old at the time the show aired. After his win, his debut album went on to reach the gold record status, and he had a number of hits. Despite this, his second album was less than successful, and it sold less than 100,000 copies. He was removed from Sony BMG shortly after. Even though he was the winner, Miranda Lambert, who came in 3rd place, was also very popular among fans. Her first album was called Kerosene, and it reached number one on the Billboard charts. By May of 2006 this album had sold over half a million copies. The host for this season was Nancy O'Dell.

Season Two of Nashville Stars

Season two aired in 2004, and Nancy O'Dell returned as the host. The winner of this season would be Brad Cotter, who was 33 years old at the time. After the season ended, Cotter's album sales were not highly successful. Though he was eliminated early on in the season, he was voted back by the viewers. It should be noted that season two is the only season in which this was allowed to happen, and the idea was scrapped in future seasons. While Cotter's debut album only sold a little more than 130,000 copies, George Canyon, who came in second place, surpassed Cotter's album sales much like Miranda Lambert in season one.

Season Three of Nashville Stars

Season three of Nashville Star aired in 2005, and the winner of this season was Erika Jo. In addition to being the first woman to win the competition, she was also the youngest winner so far, as she was only 18 years old at the time. When she emerged the winner of the show, Nashville Star had its largest audience to date, which was in excess of 3 million viewers. Season three was also the first season to make it into the top 10 shows on the network. After this season ended, Erika Jo went on to finish her debut album, and while it was at number 5 on the music charts, it sold little more than 118,000 copies over the next 12 months.

Season Four of Nashville Stars

Season four was aired in 2006, and the winner of this season was Chris Young, who was 20 years old at the time. He was the second youngest contestant to win the show so far. The previous hosts were replaced with Cowboy Troy and Wynonna Troy. A guest judge was also given a seat for each episode. While the format for the show remained the same, the extent of the season was cut down by a single week. While Chris Young's debut album made it to number 3, it has not had any singles which made it into the top 40.

Season Five of Nashville Stars

Season five aired in 2007. It was Angela Hacker who emerged victorious this season, and Zac came in second place, who was also her brother. The fifth season is the first time that relatives have been allowed to compete on the same show, and it also marks the first time that they've beat the other contestants. The show was changed to a new night, and it started earlier in the evening. While Cowboy Troy remained as co-host, Wynonna was replaced with Jewel.

Additional Nashville Resources

Latest Nashville Stars News

Shy Blakeman Eliminated from Nashville Star
Posted: 22 Mar 2006
I have to say that I really expected Shy to be eliminated from last night’s show. Last night I started to realize that when it comes to the public voting, having a great voice is not the only thing that will carry a potential star. Looks and stage performance with more of an [...]

Jewels Hanson eliminated from Nashville Stars
Posted: 18 Mar 2006
This was the first episode of Nashville Stars Season 4 and honestly the first time I have ever watched the show. I have to tell you that I was impressed with the show. I really enjoyed the energy of the contestants. The musicians for this show are: Casey Rivers Melanie Torres Matt Mason Jewels Hanson Chris Young Monique [...]