Radio Disney's The Next Big Thing

Radio Disney's The Next Big Thing
GenreContest
Country of originUnited States

Radio Disney's Next Big Thing (also known by the initials NBT) was a singing contest broadcast on Radio Disney that first launched in November 2008.[1] The contest took place over 10 weeks, with new and unsigned artists or bands competing every two weeks. Radio listeners could then vote for the singer or band of their choice to progress in the contest, with the overall winner being announced at the contest's end.[2]

Singing duo Jonnie and Brookie won the show's first season in May 2009.[3][4]

Season two of Next Big Thing began in late 2009 and was won by Jasmine Sagginario from Franklin, Tennessee.[5][6]

Season three began in 2010 and was won by Kicking Daisies, with Shealeigh winning season four in 2011.[7][8][9]

Season Five began on October 12, 2012,[10] and featured four solo singers and one singing duo competing for an appearance on the Disney Channel series Austin & Ally, the chance to have a single released through the Disney Music Group, and to open for the Next Big Thing finale concert in Los Angeles.[11] The competitors for the fifth season were Chloe and Halle Bailey, Jack Skuller, Katherine Hughes, Elle Winter, and Damian Otchere. Chloe and Halle were declared the winners on December 8, 2012.[11]

Original Style NBT: Contest for Unknown Artists (2008 - 2012)

The original NBT contest featured 5 unsigned and unknown artists for each season, with the exception of season 1, which featured 10. The artists gain exposure by performing, doing interviews and getting airtime on Radio Disney and Disney Channel. The winner of NBT would then be chosen through online polling.

Contestants

Season 1 (2008/2009): 10 total artists including,

  • Sarah Solovay
  • Push Play
  • Katie Lawhorne
  • Kacie Lynch
  • Danielle Thrush
  • Comic Book Heroes
  • Bre Morgan
  • Allstar Weekend (formerly ‘ALLSTAR’)
  • Jonnie and Brookie (winner)[12]

Season 2 (2009/2010): 5 artists

Season 3 (2010/2011): 5 artists

  • Sacha Edwards
  • Matthew Johnson
  • Coco Jones
  • Amber Lilly
  • Kicking Daisies (winner)

Season 4 (2011): 5 artists

  • Shealeigh Voitl (winner)
  • Zack Montana
  • Ladina Spence
  • Hollywood Ending (2008-2015)
  • Tay Barton

Season 5 (2012): 5 artists

Season 6 (2012/2013): 6 artists

  • The Never Ever (winner) (2009-2016)

New Format: Promo for Established Artists (2013 - 2020)

In 2013, Radio Disney started a new format for NBT, in the form of a promotional show where a single "featured artist" was highlighted, in lieu of a talent contest. Said featured artist was already signed to a record label and getting some airplay on Radio Disney as well as other stations, very much unlike NBT artists of the past, who were unsigned and had no media exposure. The featured artist would be promoted through different videos and media across the Radio Disney network as well as on the Disney Channel. Each artist was featured for a few months before moving on to a new artist. This has no resemblance to the original NBT, other than the same name and logo.

1st artist (2013):

2nd artist (2013/2014):

3rd artist (2014):

4th artist (2014):

5th artist (2014/2015):

6th artist (2015):

7th artist (2015):

8th artist (2015)

9th artist (2015/2016)

10th artist (2016):

11th artist (2016):

12th artist (2016):

13th artist (2017):

14th artist (2017):

15th artist (2017):

16th artist (2017/2018):

17th artist (2018):

18th artist (2018/2019):

19th artist (2019):

20th artist (2019):

21st artist (2019):

22nd artist (2019/2020):

References

  1. ^ "Radio Disney Focuses on Unsigned Artists". Radio Ink. Archived from the original on 16 December 2014. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  2. ^ "Teenager Jasmine crowned Radio Disney's Next Big Thing". Christian Today. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  3. ^ "Singing sisters from Gilbert getting national interest". AZ Central. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  4. ^ "Epi Amp Endorsees Jonnie and Brookie Named Disney's Next Big Thing". Gibson. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  5. ^ Burch, Bonnie (October 19, 2009). "Take a Bow: Franklin teen may be Disney's 'Next Big Thing'". The Tennessean. Archived from the original on January 31, 2013. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  6. ^ "Jasmine Sagginario Wins Radio Disney's Next Big Thing!". Crushable. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  7. ^ "Coco Jones wins Radio Disney contest". CT Post. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  8. ^ "Radio Disney's 'Next BIG Thing Winner' Congratulated By Cody Simpson, Network Execs". Hollywood Reporter. December 8, 2011. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  9. ^ "Disney Calling? A Band Takes Off". New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  10. ^ "Radio Disney's 'N.B.T.' Announces Season 5 Premiere Date, Mentors". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  11. ^ a b "Radio Disney's singing competition 'Next Big Thing': Meet the five season 5 competitors! -- EXCLUSIVE". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  12. ^ "Radio Disney – Artists – NBT". Radio Disney. Archived from the original on January 22, 2009. Retrieved January 22, 2008.
  13. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on July 21, 2013. Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  14. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on December 16, 2013. Retrieved December 16, 2013.
  15. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on January 12, 2014. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
  16. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on June 14, 2014. Retrieved June 14, 2014.
  17. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 6, 2014.
  18. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on February 7, 2015. Retrieved February 7, 2015.
  19. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on July 3, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  20. ^ "Radio Disney's "Next Big Thing" – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on September 1, 2015. Retrieved September 1, 2015.
  21. ^ "Radio Disney – Disney Music". Disney Music. Archived from the original on December 18, 2015. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  22. ^ "Radio Disney". Radio Disney. Archived from the original on May 7, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2016.
  23. ^ "Radio Disney". Radio Disney. Archived from the original on August 3, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.