New York (AFP) - Artists Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson will host a "American Song Contest" modeled after the beloved Eurovision competition in a series to premiere in March.
The show will broadcast on the US network NBC and run for eight weeks before a finale on May 9.
It will feature performers -- solo artists, duos or bands -- from all fifty US states along with one from the capital Washington and five from US territories.
"I am honored to host American Song Contest alongside my lil sis Kelly Clarkson, aka Miss Texas," said the rapper Snoop Dogg in a statement.
Clarkson was the first ever winner of the long-running song competition "American Idol."
"I have been a fan and love the concept of Eurovision and am thrilled to bring the musical phenomenon to America," she said in a statement.
"I'm so excited to work with Snoop and can't wait to see every state and territory represented by artists singing their own songs.'"
The Eurovision competition is one of the largest televised events in the world.
"Imagine if music was an Olympic sport and artists from all over the world came together to compete for the gold.That’s the Eurovision Song Contest," said "American Song Contest" producer Anders Lenhoff in a statement.
"The American version will be different than anything seen before on US television, marrying the fanfare and excitement of March Madness and the NFL playoffs with the artistry and beauty of world-class performances," the statement continued.
"The American Song Contest is a competition that happens to be televised, rather than a contest created to make a television show.And it's open to all singers with a song, whether they are amateur artists or already signed to a major record label.No one is excluded from the competition."
