John Legend To Produce ‘Pitch Perfect’ Reality TV Show
John Legend, global music superstar and Academy Award winner, is going into the reality TV show business. But he’s not going to be a contestant. Legend has signed an agreement with Core Media Group to produce a reality TV series called Sing it On, Deadline reports. The show will be featured on CBS/Lionsgate’s new cable outfit, Pop, formerly known as the TV Guide Network. The announcement was made at Pop’s upfront presentation to advertisers on Thursday morning in New York.
The show, inspired by the movie Pitch Perfect, will follow five university a cappella groups as they vie for a place at the International Collegiate of International A Cappella at the legendary Carnegie Hall. Get Lifted Co., John Legend’s production company, has also signed a first-look deal with Pop to help them create shows that fit the pop-culture focus of the network.
Legend is no stranger to competitive a cappella singing. He was a member of a choral singing group while he was an English student at the University of Pennsylvania.
“I had so much fun singing a cappella in college,” Legend, who couldn’t be at the presentation, said in a statement.
“The music, the friendships, the competitions were all a huge part of my college experience. We’re excited to be a part of a show that documents the real ups and downs of this interesting world that many know nothing about. It’s going to be an interesting journey, and I look forward to being a part of it.”
Legend’s Get Lifted Co. partner, Ty Stiklorius, is also a former a cappella group member.
The show is set to begin airing on Pop on May 13 at 10 p.m., before it moves to its regular 9 p.m. time-slot on May 20.
Legend isn’t the only celebrity that Pop is working with to produce shows that round out its network offering. The network recently acquired 13 episodes of Impress Me, a comedy serial from Rainn Wilson’s production company, Soul Pancake.
Variety reports that Pop will also be launching a new reality show called Queens of Drama, featuring soap-stars fans want to see: Lindsay Hartley, Crystal Hunt, Vanessa Marcil, Chrystee Pharris, and Hunter Tylo. The network is also looking to add new energy to the Daytime Emmy Awards by broadcasting the ceremony live and naming Tyra Banks as host.
To some, the move to produce a reality tv show may seem like an odd choice for Legend. He’s previously said that he believes that reality TV is dangerous for relationships. There’s no word yet on whether John Legend will make an appearance on Sing it On. Viewers will just have to tune in to find out.
[Photo courtesy of the Huffington Post]
