American Song Contest

The American Song Contest was a one-season music competition series on NBC, adapted from the Eurovision Song Contest. Airing eight episodes from March 21 to May 9, 2022, it was hosted by Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson. The show pitted acts from all 50 U.S. states, five territories, and Washington, D.C. against each other for the Best Original Song title. The 56 entries were split into five qualifying rounds, then two semi-finals of 11 participants each, and finally a 10-act final. Advancement from qualifying rounds to semi-finals and then to the final depended on votes from the public, a jury, or a combination of both. NBC secured U.S. broadcast rights for Eurovision in 2021 and soon announced this spin-off, set for 2022. Promotion included a Super Bowl commercial and an iHeartRadio sweepstakes. Oklahoma won, represented by AleXa with "Wonderland." Critical reception was mostly mixed, with many reviewers feeling it fell short of its Eurovision model, and NBC did not renew it for 2023. The competition worked like a bracket, with artists facing off in qualifying rounds, then semi-finals, and a final. The winner received the Best Original Song title. Originally announced in August 2020 as featuring professional solo artists, duos, or groups of up to six from each state, the format expanded by May 2021 to include all five populated U.S. territories (American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and Washington, D.C. Acts could be solo singers, duos, bands, or DJs. Each act performed an original song live on NBC over eight episodes: five qualifying rounds, two semi-finals, and one final. In each qualifying round, a 56-member jury (one per state/territory) picked one song to advance, while three more advanced based on a 35-hour viewer vote combining jury and fan tallies. After qualifying, the jury also chose two "redemption songs" to join the semi-finals, making 22 semi-finalists split into two groups of 11. The same selection process in the semi-finals determined the 10 finalists. The final results were announced Eurovision-style: each jury member awarded their top 12 points, then viewer points were added. Viewer votes were weighted so each state and territory was worth 12 points, giving all regions equal influence and preventing large states like California or Texas from dominating.