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best cover ever

Premiering late last fall to millions of hits, Best. Cover. Ever. became the latest entrant competing for eyeballs midst the ever more hectic whirl of musical reality programming. In the broadest outline, the Ludacris-hosted contest takes its cues from the modern blueprint first popularized by American Idol back before the turn of the millenium. Viewers are expected to tune in to catch the easy banter of music industry bigwigs – a murderer's row including Demi Lovato, Katy Perry, Flo Rida, Backstreet Boys, Bebe Rexha, Charlie Puth, and Keith Urban – and then grow emotionally invested in the individual stories of plucky neophytes angling for the bigger stage.

auditions today

Whatever the powers-that-be might tell the press about their innovative take upon one format or another, a truly new idea in reality television comes about almost as often as a new reality. While anything can happen, of course, past industry practices suggest genuine game-changing developments usually tend to be driven by technological advancements or singular performers and, either way, inevitably succumb to the normalizing constraints of tried-and-true formulae.

#1 It’s The Singing Contest, Not The Song

If a music competition was about nothing more than range and technique, all of the contestants would bend their pipes around the same tune. As happens, judges -- and, more importantly, audiences -- like to get a bit of variety from their talent pool. In a way, it's simple mathematics. Fashion a battle 'tween devotees of rock, pop, country, and r'n'b, the odds argue that your potential viewer will be predisposed to back one horse in the race.

singing contest, music competition, music auditions, singing competition, reality tv show, reality tv shows, katy perry, the hollywood reporter, billboard magazine, entertainment tonight

Bass Player Wanted: How Low Can You Go?

Written by Jay Horton.

bass player 02 Even in this age of power duos and synth-led rhythm section, the bassist remains a central figure of just about every rock’n’roll band, but most bandleaders can’t help thinking the position endlessly replaceable – until, at least, the time comes to find the replacement. Read below, if you dare, for a spine-chilling triptych of all-too-true horror stories (He's noodling from inside the house!) told by real bands really ruined fishing for bass in the deepest of waters.