Reborn in the USA is a British reality television show broadcast on ITV, in which ten British pop acts were transported to the US, where they were supposedly not known in the hope of revitalising their music career.
| Reborn in the USA | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Reality television, music |
| Directed by | Jonathan Bullen |
| Presented by | Davina McCall |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 8 |
| Original release | |
| Network | ITV |
| Release | 8 March – 26 April 2003 |
Each week, the American audience voted for their favourite act. The two acts with the fewest votes would then face the vote from the British public, where the following week the act with the fewest votes was eliminated from the contest and sent back to Britain. The series was presented by Davina McCall and the eventual winner was ex Spandau Ballet lead singer Tony Hadley, who was awarded with the prize of a recording contract.[1]
Overview
editThe competitors were: Tony Hadley, Michelle Gayle, Gina G, Elkie Brooks, Dollar, Leee John (of Imagination), Haydon Eshun (of Ultimate Kaos), Sonia and Mark Shaw of Then Jerico. Shaw quit the show in the first week after being criticised by other participants[which?] for his drunken behaviour prior to the recording of the first concert. Peter Cox (of Go West) was flown in as a replacement.
Further controversy arose in the second week when acts Dollar and Sonia had received the fewest votes and were both up for the public vote. Sonia elected to leave the tour due to stress, but then decided to return to face the vote. Dollar (David Van Day and Thereza Bazar) accused her of pulling a publicity stunt to gain votes, resulting in a heated argument between the two acts, where Sonia ultimately told Van Day he was "a nasty piece of work". In the end, Dollar were voted off and Sonia continued in the show for a few more weeks.[2]
The format for the show had the artists travelling on a tour bus to a new venue each week.[3] Each would perform one song which would relate to the city they were performing in (e.g. the concert in New Orleans would have each perform a well-known song about New Orleans). All songs performed were cover versions, until the final show where the final two (Hadley and Gayle) each sang one of their own hits. Despite his late entry to the show, Peter Cox was the favourite to win, but he finished in third place after forgetting the words to the song he was performing.[citation needed]
The show's theme music was composed and produced by Stuart Hancock for London-based music production company Mcasso Music, and variations of this theme music were used to accompany the on-screen action between song performances.[citation needed]
Following the show's transmission, a book and an album was released.[4][5] The album contained studio recordings of various cover versions by the acts, comprising 17 songs.
Live shows
editResults summary
edit- Colour key
| – | Singer was up for eviction from the tour bus and had to face the weeklong British public vote |
| – | Singer received the fewest public votes and was immediately eliminated |
| – | Singer received the most votes from the live American audience |
| Act | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Quarter-Final | Semi-Final | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tony Hadley | Safe | Safe | Bottom Two | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Winner | ||
| Michelle Gayle | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom Two | Bottom Two | Safe | Runner-Up | ||
| Peter Cox | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | 3rd | Eliminated (semi-final) | ||
| Haydon Eshun | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom Two | Eliminated (quarter-final) | |||
| Leee John | Safe | Safe | Safe | Bottom Two | Bottom Two | Eliminated (week 5) | ||||
| Sonia | Bottom Two | Safe | Safe | Bottom Two | Eliminated (week 4) | |||||
| Elkie Brooks | Safe | Bottom Two | Bottom Two | Eliminated (week 3) | ||||||
| Gina G | Safe | Bottom Two | Eliminated (week 2) | |||||||
| Dollar | Bottom Two | Eliminated (week 1) | ||||||||
| Mark Shaw | Withdrew (week 1) | |||||||||
| Against British public vote | Dollar, Sonia |
Elkie Brooks, Gina G |
Elkie Brooks, Tony Hadley |
Leee John, Sonia |
Leee John, Michelle Gayle |
Haydon Eshun, Michelle Gayle | ||||
Live show details
editWeek 1 (8 March 2003)
editDestination: New Orleans, Louisiana
| Artist | Song (Original artist) | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Dollar | "They Can't Take That Away from Me" (Ella Fitzgerald) | Eliminated |
| Elkie Brooks | "Love Letters" (Dick Haymes) | Safe |
| Gina G | "Fever" (Peggy Lee) | Safe |
| Haydon Eshun | "Misty Blue" (Dorothy Moore) | Safe |
| Leee John | "Unforgettable" (Nat King Cole) | Safe |
| Michelle Gayle | "When I Fall in Love" (Nat King Cole) | Safe |
| Peter Cox | "The House of the Rising Sun" (The Animals) | Safe |
| Sonia | "The Greatest Love of All" (Whitney Houston) | Bottom two |
| Tony Hadley | "To Love Somebody" (Bee Gees) | Safe |
Week 2 (15 March 2003)
editDestination: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| Artist | Song (Original artist) | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Elkie Brooks | "When Will I See You Again" (The Three Degrees) | Bottom two |
| Gina G | "Don't Leave Me This Way" (Thelma Houston) | Eliminated |
| Haydon Eshun | "I'll Make Love to You" (Boyz II Men) | Safe |
| Leee John | "Betcha by Golly, Wow" (The Stylistics) | Safe |
| Michelle Gayle | "The Whole Town's Laughing at Me" (Teddy Pendergrass) | Safe |
| Peter Cox | "Me and Mrs. Jones" (Billy Paul) | Safe |
| Sonia | "In The Midnight Hour" (Wilson Pickett) | Safe |
| Tony Hadley | "If You Don't Know Me by Now" (Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes) | Safe |
Week 3 (22 March 2003)
editDestination: Detroit, Michigan
| Artist | Song (Original artist) | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Elkie Brooks | "You Keep Me Hangin' On" (The Supremes) | Eliminated |
| Haydon Eshun | "One Day in Your Life" (Michael Jackson) | Safe |
| Leee John | "What's Going On" (Marvin Gaye) | Safe |
| Michelle Gayle | "Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday" (Stevie Wonder) | Safe |
| Peter Cox | "I Heard It Through the Grapevine" (Marvin Gaye) | Safe |
| Sonia | "You Can't Hurry Love" (The Supremes) | Safe |
| Tony Hadley | "For Once in My Life" (Stevie Wonder) | Bottom two |
Week 4 (29 March 2003)
editDestination: Memphis, Tennessee
| Artist | Song (Original artist) | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Haydon Eshun | "Blue Suede Shoes" (Elvis Presley) | Safe |
| Leee John | "Return to Sender" (Elvis Presley) | Bottom two |
| Michelle Gayle | "Love Me Tender" (Elvis Presley) | Safe |
| Peter Cox | "Always on My Mind" (Willie Nelson) | Safe |
| Sonia | "Can't Help Falling in Love" (Elvis Presley) | Eliminated |
| Tony Hadley | "Walking in Memphis" (Marc Cohn) | Safe |
Week 5 (5 April 2003)
editDestination: Nashville, Tennessee
| Artist | Song (Original artist) | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Haydon Eshun | "If Tomorrow Never Comes" (Garth Brooks) | Safe |
| Leee John | "A Little Bit More" (Dr. Hook) | Eliminated |
| Michelle Gayle | "Breathe" (Faith Hill) | Bottom two |
| Peter Cox | "You're Still the One" (Shania Twain) | Safe |
| Tony Hadley | "How Do I Live" (LeAnn Rimes) | Safe |
Week 6: Quarter-Final (12 April 2003)
edit| Act | First song | Second song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Haydon Eshun | "My Girl" (The Temptations) | "Wonderful Tonight" (Eric Clapton) | Eliminated |
| Michelle Gayle | "Until You Come Back to Me (That's What I'm Gonna Do)" (Aretha Franklin) | "Ben" (Michael Jackson) | Bottom two |
| Peter Cox | "Every Breath You Take" (The Police) | "The Tears of a Clown" (Smokey Robinson) | Safe |
| Tony Hadley | "I Can't Make You Love Me" (Bonnie Raitt) | "Changes" (David Bowie) | Safe |
Week 7: Semi-Final (19 April 2003)
editDestination: New York City, New York
| Act | First song | Second song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle Gayle | "Fly Me to the Moon" (Frank Sinatra) | "I Say a Little Prayer" (Aretha Franklin) | Safe |
| Peter Cox | "I Drove All Night" (Cyndi Lauper) | "Don't Know Why" (Norah Jones) | Eliminated |
| Tony Hadley | "Mack the Knife" (Bobby Darin) | "That's Life" (Frank Sinatra) | Safe |
Week 8: Final (11 December)
editDestination: London
| Act | First song | Second song | Third song | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle Gayle | "Sweetness" | "Love Me Tender" | "I Say a Little Prayer" | Runner-Up |
| Tony Hadley | "Through the Barricades" | "Walking in Memphis" | "That's Life" | Winner |
Album
editReborn in the USA – 17 Unforgettable Songs as Performed on the hit ITV1 Show
- Tony Hadley – "Walking in Memphis"
- Peter Cox – "Me and Mrs Jones"
- Haydon Eshun – "Misty Blue"
- Michelle Gayle – "Until You Come Back to Me"
- Elkie Brooks – "Love Letters"
- Leee John – "Betcha By Golly Wow"
- Gina G – "I Can't Make You Love Me"
- Sonia – "Evergreen"
- Haydon Eshun – "Wonderful Tonight"
- Tony Hadley – "To Love Somebody"
- Elkie Brooks – "The Rose"
- Peter Cox – "Nick of Time"
- Michelle Gayle – "Love Me Tender"
- Leee John – "A Little Bit More"
- Gina G – "Don't Leave Me This Way"
- Dollar – "Somethin' Stupid"
- Tony Hadley – "I Can't Make You Love Me"
References
edit- ^ TV.com. "Reborn in the USA". TV.com. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
- ^ "Dollar - Shooting Stars: Reborn In The USA". Dollarsite.co.uk. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
- ^ "Reborn in the USA". Ukgameshows.com. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
- ^ Malone, Maria (1 May 2003). "Reborn in the USA: The Official Inside Story of the Itv Show". Granada Media. Retrieved 1 February 2018 – via Amazon.
- ^ "Reborn in the USA: 17 Unforgettable Songs As Performed on the Hit ITV1 Show". Amazon.co.uk. 21 April 2003. Retrieved 1 February 2018.