Nashville Star, Episode 1: So You Wanna Be A Country Star

Nancy Odell welcomes us to the premiere of Nashville Star. Looking for an immediate contrast to American Idol? We already have one. There have been 8,000 hopefuls from 50 cities who have gone through local auditions to make it to a regional competition. At the regionals, the contestants get their first opportunity to perform before the judges.

The prize is a record contract with Sony Music Nashville, with their first album to be produced by country music superstar Clint Black (who is amazingly short! Nancy Odell towers over him!). The prize is a weighty one, but who will be deciding the fates of all these hopefuls?

Tracy Gershon, who has had a long career as a Sony Records Executive and currently sits on the Board of Directors of Leadership Music, NARAS, and The Actors Bridge Theater Group. She also serves as an A&R consultant at Columbia Records for Sony Nashville, New York, and Los Angeles. She happens to be the sister of actress Gina Gershon.

Robert Oermann, who has been dubbed "The Dean of Nashville's music writers," He's a established TV personality, seen regularly on the CMT series Inside Fame and on A&E's Biography. He is also the Editor-at-Large of Country Music magazine, a weekly columnist for the trade publication Music Row, and has been published in more than 100 other national magazines.

Charlie Robison, himself an up-and-coming Nashville star, born and raised in Bandera, Texas, is currently at work on his third Columbia/Lucky Dog album. The success of Robison's second album, 2001's Step Right Up (featuring a remake of NRBQ's "I Want You Bad," which had a lengthy run in country's Top 30) and his spirited, stage-quaking live performances have earned him a fast-growing reputation as an act that must be seen to be fully appreciated. Charlie's version of "Don't Take Your Guns To Town" was recently included on Sony's all-star Johnny Cash tribute album. .

Okay. So the judges are clearly qualified! It's time to meet some contestants. The three judges get to see the contestants for the first time at regionals, where they will perform a cover song and an original song of their own. The judges will choose a winner from each regional contest and those five winners have an immediate spot in the top twelve. The other seven spots will be filled based solely on judges' decisions. The first regional was Los Angeles. An interesting spot for a country music contest. But L.A. is quickly becoming a hotbed for country talent. Imagine that.

We see plenty of snippets of hopeful faces singing badly. You knew we would.

But in Los Angeles, we meet:

Jenny Mack, who Robert Oermann says is just "not ready yet."

Derek Hinckley, who Tracy Gershon says looked like he would "rather been having teeth pulled than being on that stage."

Holly Henrie, who Charlie says has "a Reba-esque thing, which would have been good 15 years ago!"

Travis Howard, who the judges seem to really like. In fact, Robert says, "I put a star on your card because I'm hoping you will be a big star!" Personally, I thought he was setting the stage on fire, pattering with the crowd and oozing with bravado! He's charismatic as hell, and judging from Tracy's fanning herself, more than a little sexy. Travis says he was forced to listen to nothing but gospel music when he was growing up, but he starting sneaking the clock radio under the covers when he was a teenager. How can you not cheer for this guy?

Dianna Gialto, who Charlie says is "adequate on vocals, but nothing stood out."

Gina Notrica, about whom Charlie expounds, "you're like a car that can go 150 miles an hours, put you want to push it farther." Tracy added, "Somehow, people have gotten the idea that singing loudly with power is good singing, but it's not. You were overpowering!"

Les Richardson, who Charlie says, "I liked the whole thing!"

Brandon Silviera, with his spikey gelled hair, and his Fred Durst stage presence, Tracy says, "I didn't feel it." But, she appears to be the lone dissenting vote, Robert says Brandon would give "Nashville a kick in the behind!" Charlie says, "If I wanted to get drunk and stupid I'd go see you!" If I were sitting with the judges, I would say that I see lots of style over substance.

Tracy, Robert, and Charlie confer on a winner. Tracy continues not to feel Brandon, but she is high on Travis and Les. Robert and Charlie give up on selling Brandon, so who is the winner? For my money, it's Travis Howard, but they didn't ask me. The winner is... Travis Howard!

On to Kansas City, where we meet:

Tammy Wilkerson, who Tracy says, "I'm so glad you sang well, because even if you didn't I would say you did or else all these people would kill me!" (Tammy did seem to have a very large representation of fans!)

Allen Howard, who Charlie gives a sideways, "If Robert E. Lee was alive, he'd be your biggest fan." I don't know if that is good or not.

Amy Sailor, who Tracy says is, "fine vocally, but you just don't stand out."

Richar Hazzard, (that's right, no "d" - that's not the only thing he's missing) Charlie says, "If you could merge male stripping with country singing, you could have a shot, but Nashville is not ready for you." But, Robert (who is getting Paula-ish) disagrees, "with the right producer, you could go a long way."

Anessa Andrews, who Robert says has, "real potential. Sign me up for the fan club!" Tracy adds, "You perform with such confidence, and that is fun to watch."

Brandi Gibson, who Robert says is "coming in loud and clear!" Tracy adds, "I'm so sick of seeing Size 2 women! I see you and I want to say let's go have a beer and some fried chicken, too!" Brandi won me over, too. She's sings with such guts and gristle, you feel everything she says. It's like she's reliving it for us. If they're going for beer and chicken, I want to go!