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How Will A Move To CMT Alter Season 5 Of Nashville?

Primetimer

By Primetimer
in Nashville [V]

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NorthstarATL

NorthstarATL

I don't get CMT, so I'd sadly miss all of that. BUT to cut costs even more they COULD just do a spin-off show called "Nashvillains" and focus on touring duo (and potential life partners, to increase ratings) Layla & Cash!

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dmc

dmc

Don't even joke about Juliette dying. 

I am torn about the move.  I used to love S1 and S2 Nashville but let's be real the reason it's getting cancelled is because the ratings are terrible because the show has gotten terrible.

I don't know how a show with that kind of talent can be so terrible but it is and it actually really makes me angry because I was a huge fan.

Issues that make Nashville terrible:

Additional characters that no one cares about- Hello Pam, Autumn, Lawyer Lady, really any of Deacon's, Avery's, and Gunnar's love interests, etc.  Stop with all the random people that aren't adding anything to the show.

Not enough music...More music-since this show is about music can we get some, thanks.

Story lines that are brought up and never actually examined and no one knows what happened to them-there are a lot of these.

Backstories that no one remembers.

Plots that take way too long to come to fruition.

Characters that suck too bad just randomly die.

Story lines that absolutely no one is interested in that just keep happening...remember Luke and Rayna...sigh

Highway  65- this needs it's own category.

and finally Layla- she needs her own category because every time she is in a story line-I hate it

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feverfew

feverfew

I'm tentatively looking forward to the new season - I mean, obviously I'm going to watch it*, because it's been my guilty pleasure for years - but I hope the new show runners will fix the problems @dmc lined up.

*One cravat: If Juliette's dead, I'm out. Put Juliette in the hospital after a plane crash or send her on tour, but I'll want a great big reunion at the end. I'll miss her terribly, but Hayden should take all the time she needs to get better. No fatal plane crash, though.

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dmc

dmc

2 hours ago, feverfew said:

I'm tentatively looking forward to the new season - I mean, obviously I'm going to watch it*, because it's been my guilty pleasure for years - but I hope the new show runners will fix the problems @dmc lined up.

*One cravat: If Juliette's dead, I'm out. Put Juliette in the hospital after a plane crash or send her on tour, but I'll want a great big reunion at the end. I'll miss her terribly, but Hayden should take all the time she needs to get better. No fatal plane crash, though.

Juliette is the show.  They need her badly.  The show suffered big time when she left both times (maternity leave, then postpartum).  They tried to move Layla's story to take over her spot but that bombed because she isn't even remotely as compelling as Juliette.  And ever since Rayna got married, it's like they don't know how to write for her anymore.  I will probably watch a few episodes as well but the fact that people want to save this show is a tribute to the cast because the writing is awful. 

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Ohmo

Ohmo

2 hours ago, dmc said:

Juliette is the show.  They need her badly.  The show suffered big time when she left both times (maternity leave, then postpartum).  They tried to move Layla's story to take over her spot but that bombed because she isn't even remotely as compelling as Juliette.  And ever since Rayna got married, it's like they don't know how to write for her anymore.  I will probably watch a few episodes as well but the fact that people want to save this show is a tribute to the cast because the writing is awful. 

I wouldn't go so far as to say Juliette is the show, but I completely agree that Juliette is needed.  She is the counterbalance to Rayna.  For me, Rayna likes to say she "struggled," but her "struggle" can't hold a candle to Juliette's actual struggle, or even Scarlett's for that matter.  Lamar was a pain in the ass, but Rayna grew up in tremendous wealth, and as much of a crap person as Lamar was, he did pay for Rayna's first album (or he did something like that behind the scenes so she wouldn't fall on her face early in her career.  I can't remember the specifics.)

In any case, Rayna's so entitled, if she's the only one of the three (Rayna, Juliette, Scarlett) on the canvas, I may very well be out.  I even get sick of her constant whining about Deacon.  Rayna had the ability to choose (or not choose) to be with Deacon in the old days.  As messed up as he was, he was her boyfriend, not her parent.  Juliette and Scarlett were children/young women dealing with messed up mothers and no fathers.

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kismet

kismet

Well, I don't get CMT with the cable package I have access to - so a big difference may be that I don't get to watch s5 for awhile.

Juliette is needed for the show. I definitely don't want her to die. Although it would be a tempting solution for the network to reduce their budget and let Avery be free.

I honestly don't know if Nashvile without Rayna & Juliette is a show that can sustain itself. I think the cast is beyond talented. And I think the show has a lot of potential. But Juliette & Rayna provide intriguing anchors for the show. The thing is the more new people the show introduced, the worse the writing got. So if you bring it back to the core characters, I think you have a better shot at making the show better. J & R can have reduced roles to allow HP & CB to do other projects, but I think the show needs them.

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dmc

dmc

On 6/9/2016 at 11:27 AM, Ohmo said:

I wouldn't go so far as to say Juliette is the show, but I completely agree that Juliette is needed.  She is the counterbalance to Rayna.  For me, Rayna likes to say she "struggled," but her "struggle" can't hold a candle to Juliette's actual struggle, or even Scarlett's for that matter.  Lamar was a pain in the ass, but Rayna grew up in tremendous wealth, and as much of a crap person as Lamar was, he did pay for Rayna's first album (or he did something like that behind the scenes so she wouldn't fall on her face early in her career.  I can't remember the specifics.)

In any case, Rayna's so entitled, if she's the only one of the three (Rayna, Juliette, Scarlett) on the canvas, I may very well be out.  I even get sick of her constant whining about Deacon.  Rayna had the ability to choose (or not choose) to be with Deacon in the old days.  As messed up as he was, he was her boyfriend, not her parent.  Juliette and Scarlett were children/young women dealing with messed up mothers and no fathers.

I would agree with you for S1 and S2, Rayna was the counterbalance.  But lately, it has not felt that way at all.  As soon as Rayna married Deacon, her story lines have completely sucked.  I mean an entire episode was devoted to her looking for that thief she hired whose name I cannot even remember and she has been completely preoccupied with Maddie's drama. 

Also Juliette is written better than Rayna.  Rayna is entitled but the show writes her as basically Miss Perfect...and it can be annoying sometimes.  But I miss when her life was actually the counterbalance to Juliette that was this show at it's best.

Now we are basically getting Juliette as the lead with a bit of Layla sprinkled in and a side of Maddie and Scarlett. 

I can always watch Juliette and to be fair, I like Maddie and Scarlett...the issue that their story lines is they are not compelling either.  Scarlett is still stuck in the Gunnar vortex and Maddie's rebelliousness makes sense if she were ambitious and wanted to further her career but the whole Cash aspect is crazy.  It's like they pick a story line and then keep it going forever even if no one is interested it.  They seem to have no barometer as to what people like about this show.

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jjj

jjj

Except, Hulu has an arrangement with ABC for series and streaming; not sure if adding CMT would add another fee.  Hoping not, because I discovered today that although I pay a lot to Comcast for many premium channels, I have to pay another $9.99/month for CMT, which is a lower-band channel, so I don't understand the need to put it behind a paywall.  If it is not on Hulu under the current subscription (no extra fee), I'll stop paying attention. 

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Kathemy

Kathemy

"How Will A Move To CMT Alter Season 5 Of Nashville?"

Well, that's simple. It won't even be the same show.

Zwick and Herskovitz are showrunners with actual integrity and character. They will bring in their favorite writers for the project. Their trademark is introspective, serious drama, not soaps.

No longer will we have to endure the guest star of the month for the quick fix of pointless side stories, because the people in charge aren't intellectually bankrupt and they do have a plan. No longer will we have to endure Nashville pampering Aubrey Peebles' sorry ass to no end. The era of preferential treatment and of writing for shock value and to extort the network is over. From now on it will be, "from each according to his and her abilities and to each according to what he or she is worth."

We'll see the best musical material given to the best singers. We'll see the juiciest and most complex acting material given to the best actors.

Mark my words, the will-they-or-won't-they of Scarlett and Gunnar is over. The multiple personalities of Layla Grant will be gone. If she is unable to convincingly portray a consistent personality, they will limit her almost exclusively to musical performances. The days of "Will Lexington, Token Gay" are at an end.

I was always invested in Nashville for its concept beyond any individual actor or actress. The concept could survive cutting half the cast. Would I want that? No, but I am overjoyed that after more than four years this project has finally been put into capable hands.

We just won the lottery, folks.

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LotusFlower

LotusFlower

This isn't a competition show.  They're all talented (well, most are), so I don't think talent level will dictate the plot.  I'm hopeful the new showrunners will write better stories, though.  At least better than this past season!  

Off to check if I even get CMT in my cable lineup...

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Kathemy

Kathemy

15 minutes ago, LotusFlower said:

This isn't a competition show.  They're all talented (well, most are), so I don't think talent level will dictate the plot.

No, it's supposed to be a drama. In a drama produced by competent show runners each person gets a job suited to his or her talents.

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LotusFlower

LotusFlower

31 minutes ago, Telepath said:

No, it's supposed to be a drama. In a drama produced by competent show runners each person gets a job suited to his or her talents.

I don't really get this argument, because I think the whole cast is really talented....I think it's the silly plot lines that let us down this past season.  For me, only Layla was bad (I think she has a nice voice, but I think she's a terrible actress), but I guess everyone has their favorites and non-favorites.  On the singing front, Connie Britten doesn't have the strongest voice and doesn't exactly light up the stage, but practically everything on the show revolves around Rayna, so that's not changing.  I guess my point is that there are a lot of factors that go into casting and storyline decisions besides talent alone.  

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Kathemy

Kathemy

But then you do understand me. You wouldn't give Aubrey a complex acting role because she can't sell it. She can only sell herself. It's the same with Clare Bowen albeit to a lesser extent, she's a better singer and a better actress but her acting ability is light years beyond her voice.

Good show runners use the talent they are given and they put them to work where they are suited. It's as simple as that.

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Chaos Theory

Chaos Theory

CMT is Country Music Television so my guess is the show is now being produced by people who understand Country Music.    Nashville the city was highly invested in keeping Nashville the show on the air so this doesn't surprise me.    CMT is actually a good fit for the show.  

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LotusFlower

LotusFlower

57 minutes ago, Telepath said:

But then you do understand me. You wouldn't give Aubrey a complex acting role because she can't sell it. She can only sell herself. It's the same with Clare Bowen albeit to a lesser extent, she's a better singer and a better actress but her acting ability is light years beyond her voice.

Good show runners use the talent they are given and they put them to work where they are suited. It's as simple as that.

Actually, I think it's the other way around.  I think they write a story, and then cast it.  With Nashville, it's a little different (and harder) because it's a show about artists, so they hired actors who could sing or singers who could act, and some worked out better than others.  I also think that actors can elevate to the material, so if the writing gets better, and they continue to emphasize good music, then it'll be a win-win.  

 

3 minutes ago, Chaos Theory said:

CMT is Country Music Television so my guess is the show is now being produced by people who understand Country Music.   

I don't think CMT is producing the show (I think the show is produced by Lionsgate, who were shopping it around looking for a new home).  CMT is just the network that will air it.  That being said, it certainly seems like a natural fit.

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memememe76

memememe76

The showrunners often structured their episodes around one or two characters. Their supposed leads may not be seen at all. They could do an entire episode involving Gunnar and Scarlett on the road. That allows Connie to still be on the show but not every episode. TBH, an episode of Juliette in rehab could be brilliant. 

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kismet

kismet

I think they will find a way to keep both Connie & Hayden on the show. I wouldn't mind if they restructured some of the show. It was very helter-skelter this year.

I'm looking forward to what they will give us. I do think CMT is a good fit for the show, just bummed I don't get the channel and will need to now get Hulu :(

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paperplate

paperplate

Funny, this show probably would not be on my radar if it was originally on CMT.  I have always received the channel but I don't listen to country  music regularly.

I hope Connie and/or Hayden don't jump ship too early.  They are the reason I love this show.

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jjj

jjj

17 hours ago, kismet said:

I think they will find a way to keep both Connie & Hayden on the show. I wouldn't mind if they restructured some of the show. It was very helter-skelter this year.

I'm looking forward to what they will give us. I do think CMT is a good fit for the show, just bummed I don't get the channel and will need to now get Hulu :(

I actually like the selection on Hulu, and they have an option for commercial-free viewing (well worth the extra $2 per month) -- but if you are signing up for "Nashville" on CMT, make sure this is part of the basic package; until they say there is not an additional fee for CMT, I will harbor the suspicion that CMT will be an add-on, like it is on Comcast.  But Hulu is a great subscription in its large basic offerings, which includes recent episodes of the ABC version of "Nashville". 

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wendyg

wendyg

I think the huge difference will be the change of network. As kismet says, CMT understands the country music biz a lot more; ABC applied pressure to push the show into a soapier direction. Even new showrunners probably would have had limited scope to effect change there - but with new bosses things may work a lot better.

I wonder if they had some sense this might happen - it was considered pretty odd that they were already staffing a writers' room without knowing whether the show was even cancelled or not.

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Sutton

Sutton

I thought the main characters CB/HP signed a 7 yr contract which means they are still under contract. HP probably would want more time to take care of her medical problems but I don't think you can just say I want out. I think the bosses know that HP has a big following to just kill her is not in their best interest.

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

5 hours ago, wendyg said:

I think the huge difference will be the change of network. As kismet says, CMT understands the country music biz a lot more; ABC applied pressure to push the show into a soapier direction. Even new showrunners probably would have had limited scope to effect change there - but with new bosses things may work a lot better.

Maybe. But those showrunners also have a pretty long history with ABC.  ABC might trust them more. Plus the person in charge of ABC was different and might have a different vision.  Of course, it's all moot now.

4 hours ago, Sutton said:

I thought the main characters CB/HP signed a 7 yr contract which means they are still under contract. HP probably would want more time to take care of her medical problems but I don't think you can just say I want out. I think the bosses know that HP has a big following to just kill her is not in their best interest.

They likely did but actors can and have negotiated their way out of contracts early.  In theory, they could force her not to work for the length of her contract but they likely wouldn't do that.  And they probably wouldn't want the negative blowback if they forced her to come back while she felt she needed a longer sabbatical for her health.

The other opening that could happen is if they try to renegotiate salaries to reduce the budget for cable. If they agree to pay an actor 100K per the contract for seven years but in year five try to reduce that to 85K per episode, the actor has the right to reject the renegotiated salary.  So the production company has to either pay the initially agreed upon fee or the actor can choose to walk away.

I don't know anyone's mindset.  The simplest answer is that yes, they're under contract right now.  But it's far from the absolute answer.

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Kazia

Kazia

I read in an article that, at the FNL reunion, CB answered "of course, of course!" when asked if we'd see more of Rayna Jaymes in season 5.

If that's true, perhaps she still is under contract? Or perhaps she wants to give season 5 a chance?

Personally, I thought Connie seemed relieved that Nashville was canceled, but now it seems like she's on board, so who knows what's going on with her.

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Guest

Guest

The media articles are saying the big question is who will come back, and they're saying negotiations are underway, so I think it's safe to say no one's locked in by existing contracts. 

Britton answering "of course" to if we'll see more of Rayna could go either way.  Even if she opts out, I imagine she'd agree to film some final exit or death scene.  Which would be us seeing more of Rayna, technically.

I honestly wouldn't expect Britton to have a lot of other options these days, though.  I know she came out of FNL popular but I don't see a lot of people loving her from AHC or Nashville.  She's always felt kind of phony and overrated to me.  I never connected to her characters.  

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betha

betha

Any CMT watchers anticipate how they will deal with Will's storyline? Will he suddenly decide he likes girls again? Will they shelve it or keep him single? or do they have the guts to keep going with it, an even more important story than ever.

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MisterS

MisterS

(edited)
14 hours ago, Winston9-DT3 said:

The media articles are saying the big question is who will come back, and they're saying negotiations are underway, so I think it's safe to say no one's locked in by existing contracts. 

Britton answering "of course" to if we'll see more of Rayna could go either way.  Even if she opts out, I imagine she'd agree to film some final exit or death scene.  Which would be us seeing more of Rayna, technically.

I honestly wouldn't expect Britton to have a lot of other options these days, though.  I know she came out of FNL popular but I don't see a lot of people loving her from AHC or Nashville.  She's always felt kind of phony and overrated to me.  I never connected to her characters.  

Connie Britton would probably have a lot of options - far from phoney for me, although in Nashville it's not like she's had decent material to work with. But what about The People vs OJ Simpson? She was mesmerising in that and showed her versatility.

Lionsgate have said that all of the cast are under long term deals and I'm choosing to take that at face value. I wouldn't be interested in Nashville without CB and HP.

I also thought CB appeared happy that Nashville had been dropped but it has been terrible recently. With the new showrunners she's likely to have better stuff to do, so here's hoping she's on board for another season. But if so I don't think it will be because no one else will give her an acting job. She's a great TV actress.

Edited by MisterS
Typos
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Ohmo

Ohmo

(edited)
10 hours ago, CreamedPeas said:

What is a "show runner"? 

A showrunner is the person or persons who head the day-to-day operations of a show. I believe that most show-runners are Executive Producers (or co-EPs).  Showrunners dictate story.  They work with the writing teams and talk to media outlets like TVLine, TV Guide, Entertainment Weekly, etc. They interact with the network and the actors on a daily basis.  Essentially, they are the boss of a series.

(I do not work in the TV industry.  This is a layperson's definition acquired from reading lots of TV websites and message boards like this one.)

Edited by Ohmo
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Ohmo

Ohmo

Quote

 I know she came out of FNL popular

Unpopular Opinion

This exemplifies my issue with Connie Britton.  She was absolutely fantastic on FNL, so she deserves all the acclaim that she gets from that.  However, that role in particular has created a certain connotation to her career that I don't like.  I've often seen it written in such a way that conveys the perception that Ms. Britton should be able to ride the role of Tami solely into any role that she wants now and forevermore.  To some extent, the same has been true of Kyle Chandler, but he had more of a talked-about resume before FNL.  People talked about Homefront and Early Edition, but the conversation seems to come to a full-stop once the words "Friday Night Lights" and "Connie Britton" are uttered together.  It's become like a magic spell, or I feel like I'm supposed to curtsy if I ever were in her presence just because she played Tami Taylor.  I haven't watched Bloodline, and Kyle still gets a lot of well-deserved acclaim for playing Coach.  However, I like that Coach has become more of a part of the conversation about Kyle instead of continuing to dominate the conversation. Connie's work in the O.J. series is beginning to whisper a bit, but Tami Taylor is still a very loud yell.

I'm not the biggest fan of Rayna James, but we could become better friends if the character could be written so she might temper some of the "Tami" talk.

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Ohmo

Ohmo

53 minutes ago, Clemgo3165 said:

That's what I thought too. And while Will Chase can sing, his voice never seemed suited to the "bro" country they always saddled him with.

I would agree with that.  I first saw Will in SMASH (where he was great), and it took me awhile to get used to hearing him sing country music.  You're right that he didn't seem suited to the genre.  I guess I'm still focusing on his work on SMASH, and I'm just generally bummed that we're losing a singer of his caliber. 

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shoregirl

shoregirl

(edited)

Will Chase is heading back to Broadway. 

http://www.ew.com/article/2016/06/23/something-rotten-will-chase

3 hours ago, Ohmo said:

I would agree with that.  I first saw Will in SMASH (where he was great), and it took me awhile to get used to hearing him sing country music.  You're right that he didn't seem suited to the genre.  I guess I'm still focusing on his work on SMASH, and I'm just generally bummed that we're losing a singer of his caliber. 

He was the final Roger during Rents broadway run. They filmed it for dvd release which is the first time I saw him.

Edited by shoregirl
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kismet

kismet

TVLine confirmed that Will & Aubrey are out. http://tvline.com/2016/06/22/nashville-season-5-will-chase-leaving-luke-cast/

In a way, I'm sad for both. I don't think the writers had any clue what to do with Layla, but I did enjoy when she sang. However, I guess that wasn't enough to keep her around.

As for Will, his character went the full 180. I went from hating him to absolutely loving all his scenes by the end of s4. I hope that they let him have his happy ride into the sunset to see his family. No need to ruin that perfect ending. Also glad for the actor that he got a Broadway gig, in the youtubes I've seen of him on the stage ~ he is really good, Nashville was probably only going to hold him back. And if they don't kill him, he could always come back to guest and sing a song or 2. I will miss him, and I never thought I would type that a year or so ago.

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Bort

Bort

I doubt either of them will be back for any sort of exit storyline. Their absences will most likely be explained with some dialogue and that'll be it. 

I will also miss listening to Aubrey sing, I liked her voice. But Layla was a giant mess of a character from day one, kept changing personalities to suit the storyline, horribly written character that they never seemed to know what to do with. 

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Kathemy

Kathemy

I will be happy that I'll never have to endure another song by Layla Grant in my life. Her whiny, needy, woe-is-me tone combined with the pettiness and victim mentality which was a constant for all her personalities made listening to her a pain whether she talked, sung or wailed.

She's an above-average singer but she's a terrible actress. She doesn't even seem to be able to pull off playing herself on-screen, and that is rare.

Will Chase on the other hand was certain to bounce back as he's already have. He's got actual stage talent and experience.

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Irlandesa

Irlandesa

(edited)

I'm sad about Will.  I never hated Luke.  I definitely felt he was a better character away from Rayna but I was never invested enough in Rayna/Duke to care that Luke was the "interloper." 

It was a little weird to see him sing country but by the fourth season, I by far found him to be very believable as the head of an artist-run label with a touch of the good-old-boy. Some weeks he was pretty much the only thing I felt I could safely watch. Now we'll only be left with Rayna's label which is said because I think the show did a much better job of convincing me of Luke in that role.  It's probably because most of his stories are directly related to his artists as opposed to Rayna whose top stories related to her role as a girlfriend/wife and mother before being a record company head. 

Now Layla?  Unfortunately, I've never found anything redeeming about her so I won't miss her.

Edited by Irlandesa
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