(Nexstar) – Playing the “Star-Spangled Banner” at the beginning or end of the broadcast day was once a staple of local television stations, including WAVY TV 10 and FOX43.
Now the U.S. National Anthem is returning to the air.
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. , the parent company of WAVY TV 10 and FOX43, has formed a new partnership with Broadcast Music Inc. (BMI®) and Belmont University’s Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business to air a new singer/songwriter series featuring a daily broadcast of the U.S. National Anthem performed by a variety of emerging artists.
Nexstar is restoring this long-held tradition across 171 stations in 100 markets starting this Labor Day, September 2.
The new singer/songwriter series will showcase multiple renditions of the National Anthem by BMI’s emerging talented songwriters who will record their own unique versions of the Star-Spangled Banner at Belmont University’s Ocean Way Studios.
Nexstar will deliver professionally produced music video recordings of the national anthem to more than 43 million television households across the United States. This new daily series will air every morning on WAVY TV 10 and FOX 43.
“Nexstar’s core mission is to provide exceptional service to the local communities where we operate across America through our organization-wide commitment to localism, unbiased local broadcast journalism and telling the local stories that matter to our viewers and their families,” stated Tim Busch, President of Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc. “We look forward to returning the time-honored tradition of including the National Anthem in our stations’ broadcasts with this new partnership.”
The first group of songwriters to be featured include Nashville-based Brian Sutherland, Texas native Kristen Kelly, and 2018 American Idol contestant Julia Cole. All musical genres will be highlighted during the series.
