Keith Urban has been announced as the headlining superstar for CBS's new country music discovery series 'The Road'. The show aims to revolutionize the music competition format with a unique real-world approach.

Unlike traditional music competitions, 'The Road' eliminates nationwide voting and multiple rounds. Instead, emerging artists will open for Urban at live venues, where randomly selected audience members will vote for their favorite performers immediately after the shows.

The free concert series includes seven tapings across major cities:

• Fort Worth (March 2)
• Dallas (March 5)
• Oklahoma City (March 9)
• Tulsa (March 12)
• Memphis (March 24)
• Nashville (March 28 and April 2)

Shows are designed to be efficient, with events like the Fort Worth opening at Tannahill's Tavern & Music Hall running from 7:00-9:30 PM local time. These performances are separate from Urban's upcoming High and Alive World Tour.

Urban, drawing from his own experience, explained the show's concept: "I spent a lot of my underage life playing in some seedy pubs, sometimes just for the bartender. There are things in this business that can't be taught, like how to put together a setlist, whether to extend or cut a song during your performance, or how to work the crowd."

The Blake Shelton-produced series is scheduled to premiere this fall, with registration for free tickets now open. While the show faces competition from established music programs, its real-world performance format offers a fresh approach to discovering new country talent.

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