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Country Showdown
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Country Showdown
The Country Showdown is an annual talent contest to find undiscovered country music singers across the United States. It is also the oldest and biggest Country Music Talent Search. As many as 100,000 acts compete in the Country Showdown annually, making it the largest country music talent competition in the United States.
The annual event was first started in 1982 and created by Paul Stanley of PS Promotions. At the time Wrangler sponsored the event. Wrangler served as sponsor from 1982 - 1986. After 1986 the Showdown switched sponsors to True Value. Various companies co-sponsored the event, including GMC, Dodge, Coca-Cola, and Jimmy Dean. True Value was active in the event sponsorship for 14 years, until in 2000, when Colgate became the event sponsor until 2011.
In 2011 showdown sponsorship shifted again to Texaco where is remained for 3 Seasons
In 2015 the Country Showdown brought on a new President and CEO who shifted the show toward artist development as well as continuing the showcasing opportunities for artists. Radio Stations throughout the United States offer local showcases where artist move onto Regional then Semifinals events before being able to participate in the National Final Event. Each National Final offers artists mentoring sessions with music industry insiders, promoters, producers, artist development and stage development coaches. They also get an opportunity to tour and sing at iconic Nashville Honky Tonks and walk in the footsteps of past artists.
The Country Showdown is structured as a four-round, single-elimination tournament, with each round representing a larger geographic area than the one before it.
The opening round is the local round; it is typically sponsored by a local country radio station (approximately 450 stations hold local contests for the Country Showdown as of the early 2010s) in the spring. The winners of the local contests then move onto the state championships, whose winners in turn advance to one of five regional finals (Southwest, Southeast, Midwest, Northeast and West). The winners of each regional final advance to the national final, held at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, in January of each year. The National Final is taped in front of a live audience and later televised as a 1-hour-long program, and is broadcast on syndication in March and April. The act which is crowned victorious wins a grand prize of $100,000, along with the title of "Best New Act in Country Music", and a chance at notability which would help them to further their musical career.
Throughout the competition the same judging criteria are used to ensure a fair competition in each level. There are five different aspects the judges use to decide the winner: marketability, originality of performance, vocal and instrumental abilities, stage presence, and overall charisma. Additional points can be awarded if the contestants perform original music.
The judges for the January 14, 2010, National Final were: Fred Foster, Cris Lacy, Brian Mansfield, Jim Catino, Fletcher Foster, and Rod Essig. The judges are music business executives from Sony Music, Atlantic Records, Warner Music, and Creative Artists Agency. Brian Mansfield, though not a music executive, is a correspondent from Nashville, who works for the USA Today. Judges in the past have included Autumn House, Carole Ann Mobley, Patti Page, and Beverly Keel.
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Country Showdown
The Country Showdown is an annual talent contest to find undiscovered country music singers across the United States. It is also the oldest and biggest Country Music Talent Search. As many as 100,000 acts compete in the Country Showdown annually, making it the largest country music talent competition in the United States.
The annual event was first started in 1982 and created by Paul Stanley of PS Promotions. At the time Wrangler sponsored the event. Wrangler served as sponsor from 1982 - 1986. After 1986 the Showdown switched sponsors to True Value. Various companies co-sponsored the event, including GMC, Dodge, Coca-Cola, and Jimmy Dean. True Value was active in the event sponsorship for 14 years, until in 2000, when Colgate became the event sponsor until 2011.
In 2011 showdown sponsorship shifted again to Texaco where is remained for 3 Seasons
In 2015 the Country Showdown brought on a new President and CEO who shifted the show toward artist development as well as continuing the showcasing opportunities for artists. Radio Stations throughout the United States offer local showcases where artist move onto Regional then Semifinals events before being able to participate in the National Final Event. Each National Final offers artists mentoring sessions with music industry insiders, promoters, producers, artist development and stage development coaches. They also get an opportunity to tour and sing at iconic Nashville Honky Tonks and walk in the footsteps of past artists.
The Country Showdown is structured as a four-round, single-elimination tournament, with each round representing a larger geographic area than the one before it.
The opening round is the local round; it is typically sponsored by a local country radio station (approximately 450 stations hold local contests for the Country Showdown as of the early 2010s) in the spring. The winners of the local contests then move onto the state championships, whose winners in turn advance to one of five regional finals (Southwest, Southeast, Midwest, Northeast and West). The winners of each regional final advance to the national final, held at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee, in January of each year. The National Final is taped in front of a live audience and later televised as a 1-hour-long program, and is broadcast on syndication in March and April. The act which is crowned victorious wins a grand prize of $100,000, along with the title of "Best New Act in Country Music", and a chance at notability which would help them to further their musical career.
Throughout the competition the same judging criteria are used to ensure a fair competition in each level. There are five different aspects the judges use to decide the winner: marketability, originality of performance, vocal and instrumental abilities, stage presence, and overall charisma. Additional points can be awarded if the contestants perform original music.
The judges for the January 14, 2010, National Final were: Fred Foster, Cris Lacy, Brian Mansfield, Jim Catino, Fletcher Foster, and Rod Essig. The judges are music business executives from Sony Music, Atlantic Records, Warner Music, and Creative Artists Agency. Brian Mansfield, though not a music executive, is a correspondent from Nashville, who works for the USA Today. Judges in the past have included Autumn House, Carole Ann Mobley, Patti Page, and Beverly Keel.