Spring Break
"Nashville" looks to top the charts with new reality
Review: "Nashville"
Jake Corbin
Issue date: 9/14/07 Section: Features
Looks can be deceiving. Anyone with experience in the world of dim lighting and drinks can attest to that, but it has also found new meaning in the virtual realm of television. Thank "Laguna Beach" for that. When Kristin Cavallari and crew debuted on MTV, so did the dawning of a new era - faux reality shows.
Now the producers of "Laguna Beach" are back, but this time they have taken their talents to the Fox network. "Nashville," a story that follows seven hopefuls as they try to make their mark in the country music business, premieres at 9 p.m. on Fox 40.
The drama of trying to fulfill one's lifelong dreams in the music biz might be exciting enough for some, but not this show.
Expect plenty of heart-wrenching background stories, problems with significant others, and a firsthand look at the life of young, pretty people away from their parents for the first time.
Think "American Idol" plus "The Real World" divided by "The Young and the Restless." With an equation like that, Fox stands to cash in on what could be the newest round of addictive television watching.
The show's producers, Gary and Julie Auerbach, are also hoping their decision to ditch the bright lights and big city for the heartland will go over well with their core viewership.
"New York or L.A. people, when they deal with Middle America, they kind of make fun of it," said Gary Auerbach in Entertainment Weekly. "But really that's where most of your viewers are coming from."
If shows like "Laguna Beach" can succeed, then Fox definitely has a potential hit on its hands, given the fact the kids on MTV's show had absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
In fact, most of the characters came across as juvenile and bitchy - the type of behavior you were glad to leave behind in high school. Regardless, ask 10 college students if they watched the show and seven would probably say "yes."
Although "Nashville" does share the partially scripted "reality" of its Orange County counterpart, there's one blinding difference. "Nashville" is made up of a talented cast that has the potential to cut your next favorite record.
My recommendation - if you are a fan of anything MTV puts out these days and can stomach country music, give "Nashville" a look and a listen.
Jake Corbin can be reached at jcorbin@statehornet.com
Now the producers of "Laguna Beach" are back, but this time they have taken their talents to the Fox network. "Nashville," a story that follows seven hopefuls as they try to make their mark in the country music business, premieres at 9 p.m. on Fox 40.
The drama of trying to fulfill one's lifelong dreams in the music biz might be exciting enough for some, but not this show.
Expect plenty of heart-wrenching background stories, problems with significant others, and a firsthand look at the life of young, pretty people away from their parents for the first time.
Think "American Idol" plus "The Real World" divided by "The Young and the Restless." With an equation like that, Fox stands to cash in on what could be the newest round of addictive television watching.
The show's producers, Gary and Julie Auerbach, are also hoping their decision to ditch the bright lights and big city for the heartland will go over well with their core viewership.
"New York or L.A. people, when they deal with Middle America, they kind of make fun of it," said Gary Auerbach in Entertainment Weekly. "But really that's where most of your viewers are coming from."
If shows like "Laguna Beach" can succeed, then Fox definitely has a potential hit on its hands, given the fact the kids on MTV's show had absolutely no redeeming qualities whatsoever.
In fact, most of the characters came across as juvenile and bitchy - the type of behavior you were glad to leave behind in high school. Regardless, ask 10 college students if they watched the show and seven would probably say "yes."
Although "Nashville" does share the partially scripted "reality" of its Orange County counterpart, there's one blinding difference. "Nashville" is made up of a talented cast that has the potential to cut your next favorite record.
My recommendation - if you are a fan of anything MTV puts out these days and can stomach country music, give "Nashville" a look and a listen.
Jake Corbin can be reached at jcorbin@statehornet.com
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