I just needed to congratulate Melissa on winning Nashville Star 2008.. and having the #1 Country Song in the Nation ... and the #1 song on Itunes!

We love you!

Popular 'Design Star' has remodeled HGTV By Bill Keveney, USA TODAY HGTV Design Star doesn't just improve the appearance of homes. It has added sparkle to the network's schedule as well. In its first two seasons, the home-design competition has been HGTV's most-watched show, spawning series hosted by its two winners, David Bromstad (Color Splash) and Kim Myles (Myles of Style). Last year's final drew more than 3 million viewers. Design Star's Season 3 (Sunday, 9 ET/PT) introduces nine finalists who will compete in weekly makeover challenges, with the winner getting an HGTV show. After seasons in New York and Las Vegas, Star moves to Nashville and will feature a visit by country singer Sara Evans. Star's mix of style, a core interest for HGTV viewers, and reality elements, which can draw additional viewers, creates a family show that can attract a broader audience, says HGTV's James Bolosh, who oversees the show. "There's great design," he says. "There's great casting, characters you're really invested in. And the storytelling is so good." To reinforce the character element, Star 3 will have two fewer contestants than the previous edition, so that viewers can get to know them better, he says. Sunday's casting special will introduce the finalists, including one chosen by a fan vote at HGTV.com, which will have its own Star elements. Each episode after that will feature a design competition, with the weakest performer being eliminated — or having his or her show canceled, as Star puts it — by the show's judges: architect and interior designer Vern Yip, designer and author Cynthia Rowley and In Style executive editor Martha McCully. When two finalists remain, another viewer vote decides the winner. In the crowded world of cable, a high-profile show such as Star can strengthen a network's identity and promote its other series, says Bill Carroll, director of programming for Katz Television Group.

See # 4 .. Boooo Yahhhh

'Nashville Star': It's all about the music. Almost.

Jun 10, 2008, 03:20 PM | by Mandi Bierly

Categories: Country Y'all!, Music, Reality TV, Television

Nashvillestar_l_2 EW's Whitney Pastorek recently pronounced Nashville Star better than American Idol. Assuming the show's shine -- seemingly buffed by Nashville's move to NBC from USA for its sixth season -- doesn't wear off next week, I might just agree with her. Before we break down the Top 12 contestants (pictured, from left to right, Coffey Anderson, Gabe Garcia, and Justin Gaston), let's examine what the show did right in last night's two-hour premiere:

1. Limited the bad auditions to one montage: Because really, if you've seen one delusional wannabe say, "That's fine, because you know what? I'm a star in my own mind," you've seen 'em all. Also, judge John Rich, of Big & Rich, telling a Weezer-lookin' guy that "There is a very good chance that someone would beat the crap out of you on the Grand Ole Opry" is funny — once.

2. Made you believe that the judges actually care: Forget, for a moment, the ridiculous pyrotechnics used in the judges' entrance on the main stage, and think back to the clip of Jewel, Rich, and songwriter Jeffrey Steele (Rascal Flatts' smash "What Hurts the Most") weeding the 50 semifinalists down to the Top 12. Jewel stopped contestant Charley Jenkins mid-song: "Your voice is really tight, and I can't tell if it's 'cause you can't sing or 'cause you're choking yourself." Rich pulled out his guitar and suggested Jenkins change his tune. He made the cut. Also, starting next week, each judge will serve as a mentor to one group of contestants (solo artists, duos, and trios). That's awesome.

I am pretty darn Proud!!
Country Stars Shine on Nashville Star
Step Aside Idol and Let the Real Musicians Perform
By Lenora Murdock, published Jun 10, 2008

Head-to-head American Idol may attract more viewers, but as Nashville Star moves to NBC for its 6th season viewers may be surprised at what Nashville Star has to offer: top notch singers, song writers, and musicians.

Forget the amateurs who show up year after year on American Idol. Tune in to Nashville Star and listen to the up and coming country music stars.

No wanna-be singers slip through the audition process on Nashville Star. 50 singers go to Nashville and only a few minutes into the show the 12 competitors emerged. Nashville Star showed only a handful of auditions, unlike American Idol who makes a mockery of people's attempts to find stardom via American Idol.

I think one of the biggest differences, which appeals to me, is that Nashville Star contestants seem to have a passion about music. American Idol contestants are passionate about stardom, in most cases singing, and rarely in music as an art form.

Nashville Star contestants embrace music in all of its forms. There expression of the art form is via country music, but they seem to feel the music, live the music, and it shows in their performances. It also shows in their song writing and artistic talents.

American Idol contestants have a tendency to be shallow. When I watch the audition tapes, I see people who couldn't carry a tune in a bucket with two handles and a lid. They are looking for popularity, record label deals, and stardom.

First off let me thank each and everyone of you that have so passionately expressed such interest in Nashville Star. We did everything we could to spread the most correct information regarding the casting process. I am sorry that at times it got confusing but after 8 regionals audition cities, 4 national semi finals, 10,000 home submission tapes, and over 45,000 auditions. The top 35 acts are in Nashville competing for the coveted spot in the top 10. I am honored to have had the chance to listen to so many of you and honestly think that the talent and enthusiasm for this project has surpassed everything that has come before it. CONGRATULATIONS TO THE FINALISTS AND TO ALL THAT WERE PART OF NASHVILLE STAR 2008.

Buddy TV
Viva Hollywood: Series Premiere Review
Monday, April 14, 2008
Viva Hollywood Without sounding too dramatic, the greatest reality show in the history of television premiered tonight as VH1 launched Viva Hollywood, the search for the next great telenovela star. On a camp level, the Latino culture is miles ahead of America in terms of soaps. Spanish-language soap operas, or telenovelas, or cattier, more over-the-top, and just plain more fun than their American counterparts.

In that tradition, Viva Hollywood succeeds as pure entertainment. Twelve aspiring actors are placed in a house, called the Casa de Locos, and forced to compete in a series of challenges designed to test their ability to thrive in the passionate, sinful world of telenovelas.

In the premiere, we meet all the contestants. There's Berto, who had his first sexual experience at 9, Jainmy, a mother, Gisel, the resident sexpot, Alexcy, the cocky newcomer, and countless other memorable people. The joy of the show could be the absurdity, particularly to American viewers unfamiliar with the massive cultural gaps. Did you ever wonder why Nely Galan was billed as a “celebrity” on The Celebrity Apprentice? Well, on this show, hosts Carlos Ponce and Maria Conchita Alonso are treated like royalty. It's a cultural thing, probably on par in the U.S. if Patrick Dempsey and Jennifer Aniston were hosting a reality show.

They also brought in Walter Mercado, who you would undoubtedly recognize, that weird looking feminine old dude who is billed as the leading Spanish astrologist. He introduces the challenges in a Charlie's Angels sort of way. The first challenge, “Passion,” involved the contestants learning to fight.