NBC's 'American Song Contest' determines which new tune is best

Popular overseas since the mid-1950s among millions of viewers, the Eurovision songwriting competition is coming to America ... in a fashion.

Whereas that contest pits countries against one another to come up with the best new tune, "American Song Contest" - premiering Monday, March 21, on NBC - makes it a rivalry between every U.S. state, plus five American territories and Washington, D.C. Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg serve as hosts as a different artist or group represents each competing region, with the eight-week event culminating in a finale slated for May 9.

Justin Jesso, a native of Glencoe who now lives in L.A., will be representing Illinois. According to his bio, the songwriter, who is signed to Sony, has collaborated with pop stars such as Ricky Martin, Maluma, the Backstreet Boys and Norwegian producer Kygo. He released his debut EP, "Let It Be Me," in 2019.

Since "American Song Contest" is going into a slot traditionally held by another NBC music competition - "The Voice" - it's convenient that the shows share several executive producers. Audrey Morrissey is one of them, and she reasons that "now's the time" for the Eurovision premise to make its way here.

"NBC decided to bring this exciting format to this country and asked if I'd like to take it on, and of course, I did not hesitate.," Morrissey said. "I think fans of 'The Voice' will love the show."

Morrissey says she was aware of Eurovision before getting involved in the U.S. variation, "but like a lot of Americans, I knew very little. I basically knew it existed, I knew countries competed, I knew (the music group) ABBA was discovered through Eurovision, and I knew Will Ferrell had done a movie about Eurovision (the 2020 Netflix satire 'Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga,' about an entry from Iceland)."

With the existence of "The Voice," "American Idol" and other musical talent contests - also including the writing-focused "Songland," in which she was involved as well - Morrissey reflects that it "possibly" took those programs to set a path for Eurovision to make the trip to America.

"I really think of it as the Olympics of song," she maintains. "In Eurovision, it's countries competing, and their nations are behind them. With this, there will be 56 songs and artists and territories participating."

Importantly, the songs will cut across a variety of genres, representing what Morrissey terms "every nuance of music. It's really been exciting to see what is bubbling to the top, and from which region. It might be exactly what you might think, or it might be a massive surprise."

Not surprising to Morrissey, especially since she has worked with both on "The Voice," is what the hosts bring to "American Song Contest." They're also executive producers of the program, and Morrissey asserts, "You know what they stand for when you see them ... and they stand for very different things. We're so lucky to have them. They're the perfect people to helm this show for us."