WPSG Philadelphia is readying a second season of local music reality show Gimme The Mike –Philadelphia.
The Viacom-owned UPN station will debut the talent competition, where local aspiring singers compete for a recording deal, May 22 at 8 p.m. and repeat May 27 and May 28.
After that, the show will air Sunday at 9 p.m. and repeat the following Saturday at 10 p.m.
WPSG is among a handful of local stations producing a second season of Gimme The Mike.
The show format was originally developed by the Post-Newsweek Station Group and licensed to other local broadcasters.
Two Post-Newsweek stations, KPRC Houston and WJXT Jacksonville, Fla., recently produced second seasons, as have several Belo Corp.-owned affiliates, such as KONG Seattle. More versions are coming this summer. WSYX Columbus will debut its Gimme the Mike June 7 and encore episodes on sister Fox station WTTE. In July, KOTV Tulsa and KWTV Oklahoma City will debut their latest versions.
Locally-produced programs like Gimme the Mike give stations a chance to develop deeper partnerships with local advertisers, such as product placement and sponsorships.
In Philadelphia, automaker Kia is the title sponsor for WPSG’s program, officially called Kia Presents Gimme the Mike –Philadelphia. Among the tie-ins: The winner of the competition will receive a Kia car. Other sponsors include Rosenberger’s Dairies, Metro Philadelphia, Eternity Stores, Balla Clothing and World Cafe Live.
WPSG is producing the show in-house in collaboration with Jeff Fish of Reel Production, who helped develop the idea for the competition.
