CMT Acquires Nashville Star

CMT and NBC struck an agreement to bring second-run episodes of Nashville Star to the cable network just a few days after they air on the broadcast network.

The sixth season of the reality competition will premiere on NBC June 9, with CMT getting second-run rights beginning Saturday, June 14, before moving to its regular Friday-evening time slot June 20.

The series is an American Idol for country music, hoping to find undiscovered talent and make them into stars.

With country-music stars Billy Ray Cyrus, John Rich and Jewel participating, Nashville Star was a natural fit for CMT, while NBC is hoping that viewers on cable might make their way to the first-run broadcast of the show.

“Partnering with CMT is a strategic move by Reveille [now ShineReveille] and NBC to create a brand affiliation for Nashville Star with the biggest television outlet for country music,” said executive producer Howard T. Owens, managing director of Reveille, in a statement. “To repurpose on CMT was the only natural distribution fit.”