Kesha, Paisley and Ludacris will serve as judges, while Groban will host the new summer singing competition.
- May 17, 2014
AceShowbiz - ABC's "Rising Star" team has been formed. The show enlists pop singer Kesha (formerly stylized as Ke$ha), country crooner Brad Paisley and hip-hop artist Ludacris as judges for its inaugurual edition, with singer-songwriter Josh Groban as the host.
The summer singing competition is based on the popular Israeli format. It will feature a contestant singing with a wall separating him/her from the audience. As the contestant sings, audience vote on the performance via a smartphone app. Photos of the viewers voting for him/her will be shown on a giant screen. If he/she reaches a certain level of votes, the wall will be lifted to reveal the singer to the audience.
"Rising Star" will debut Sunday, June 22 at 9 P.M. on ABC.
Kesha, who recently dropped $ from her name, is no stranger to unscripted TV world, having starred on MTV's documentary "Ke$ha: My Crazy Beautiful Life". Groban has had hosting experience, serving as guest a co-host several times on "Live!" with Kelly Ripa. Paisly has co-hosted CMA Awards with Carrie Underwood for six consecutive years, while Ludacris will host the 2014 Billboard Music Awards this Sunday, May 18.
