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Radio Disney's The Next Big Thing facts for kids

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Radio Disney's The Next Big Thing
Genre Contest
Country United States

Radio Disney's Next Big Thing (also known as NBT) is a cool singing contest that started on Radio Disney in November 2008. In the contest, new singers or bands who aren't famous yet compete over 10 weeks. Every two weeks, new artists show off their talent. Listeners like you get to vote for your favorite singer or band. The artist with the most votes moves forward. At the end, one overall winner is announced! The singing duo Jonnie and Brookie won the very first season in May 2009.

The second season of Next BIG Thing started in late 2009. It was won by Jasmine Sagginario from Franklin, Tennessee. Kicking Daisies won season three in 2010. Then, Shealeigh won season four in 2011.

Season Five began on October 12, 2012. This season had four solo singers and one singing duo. They were all competing for some awesome prizes! The winner would get to appear on the Disney Channel show Austin & Ally. They would also get to release a song through the Disney Music Group. Plus, they would open for the Next Big Thing finale concert in Los Angeles. The artists in season five were Chloe and Halle Bailey, Jack Skuller, Katherine Hughes, Elle Winter, and Damian Otchere. Chloe and Halle were announced as the winners on December 8, 2012.

About the NBT Contest

The original NBT contest was a chance for new and unknown artists to get noticed. Usually, five artists competed, but season one had ten! These artists got to perform their songs. They also did interviews and got airtime on Radio Disney and the Disney Channel. This helped them become more famous.

After they performed, people could vote online for their favorite artist. The one with the most votes became the winner of NBT!

Past Contestants and Winners

Here are some of the artists who competed in the early seasons of NBT:

Season 1 (2008/2009)

  • ALLSTAR
  • Comic Book Heroes
  • Bre Morgan
  • Jonnie and Brookie (winner)
  • Sphynsie

Season 2 (2009/2010)

Season 3 (2010/2011)

  • Sacha Edwards
  • Matthew Johnson
  • Coco Jones
  • Amber Lilly
  • Kicking Daisies (winner)

Season 4 (2011)

  • Shealeigh Voitl (winner)
  • Zack Montana
  • Ladina Spence
  • Hollywood Ending
  • Tay Barton

Season 5 (2012)

Season 6 (2012/2013)

  • The Never Ever (winner)

NBT's New Format

In 2013, Radio Disney changed how NBT worked. It stopped being a competition. Instead, it became a way to promote one "featured artist" at a time. These artists were usually already signed to a music label. They were also getting their songs played on Radio Disney and other stations. So, they weren't as unknown as the artists in the old NBT contest.

The featured artist would be promoted in different videos and on the Radio Disney website. They also got airtime on the station and sometimes on the Disney Channel. Each artist was featured for a few months. Then, a new artist would be chosen. This new format was very different from the original NBT. However, they kept the same name and logo.

Featured Artists (New Format)

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

  • Jagmac (17th artist)
  • Anne-Marie (18th artist, 2018/2019)

2019

  • Lennon Stella (19th artist)
  • Meg Donnelly (20th artist)
  • Gabby Barrett (21st artist)
  • 2XO (22nd artist, 2019/2020)
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