Don't Forget The Lyrics! Season 1 Release Date, Cast, And More Information
No, you're not experiencing déjà vu — "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" has been rebooted by Fox. Comedian Wayne Brady served as the host of the original iteration of the game show, which aired from 2007 to 2009, per Deadline. The following year, singer Mark McGrath got some rare time in the spotlight when he took over hosting duties for the syndicated version of the series.
The show might not be your jam if you're a fan of reality singing competitions like "American Idol" and "The Voice," which are all about having spectacular vocals and trying to impress a panel of famous judges. "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" is basically like karaoke with an incomplete lyrics screen and music that comes to an abrupt halt at some point in the song, and as long as contestants sing the correct missing words, it doesn't matter how horrible they sound. So, those prone to belting out mondegreens aren't going to make it very far.
"'Don't Forget the Lyrics!' wraps everything about why people love, enjoy and treasure music into one big, fun, high-energy and high-stakes show," Fox Entertainment exec Rob Wade said of the reboot. Fox aired a promo for the series during an episode of its hit "The Masked Singer," per TV Insider, so the network clearly has high hopes for it this time around. Here's everything we know about the show's return.
When will Season 1 of Don't Forget the Lyrics be released?
According to Popculture, the OG version of "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" was canceled because its ratings were so low, so it might seem like an odd move to bring it back over a decade later. However, it had some stiff competition when it originally premiered: the similar NBC game show "The Singing Bee." NBC's take on the idea was a bigger hit ratings-wise, according to Pop Matters, but now that it's long gone, "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" might fare better.
Fans of musical wordsmithery can start testing their own musical knowledge when Season 1 of the reboot premieres May 23, 2022, at 8 p.m. ET/PT. on Fox. According to Deadline, viewers will also be able to watch the show on Fox's streaming platform Tubi. Some of the songs featured in a preview clip include the NSYNC earworm "Bye Bye Bye," the Madonna classic "Borderline" and Meghan Trainor's toe-tapper "All About That Bass." According to the show's description, "Contestants will choose songs from different genres, decades and musical artists." They have to accurately complete the lyrics to 10 tunes if they want to take home the $1 million top prize.
Creator Jeff Apploff believes that the reboot is primed for success, pointing out that his original concept was popular enough that he was able to sell it "in over 20 countries around the world," per Deadline. He added, "The time is perfect to make it even bigger and better."
Who's in the cast of Don't Forget the Lyrics Season 1?
The "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" reboot is going to be hosted by "Reno 911!" star Niecy Nash, who told Vibe that she's also one of the show's executive producers. She proved that she's up for the job by filling in for Nick Cannon in 2021 when he had COVID-19 and was unable to host a few episodes of the Fox reality competition "The Masked Singer," as reported by Entertainment Weekly.
Speaking to Vibe, Nash described one aspect of her new job that she thoroughly enjoys. "It's so great to give people bags and bags of money after we've gone through such a hard time with this pandemic," she said. "When I wrapped it, I just cried because I was so happy. So many people needed that money."
The show's contestants will be people from all walks of life, with a casting call listing just a few requirements: They have to live in or near Southern California, be over 18 years of age, have "outgoing & interesting" personalities, and "know the lyrics to the biggest hit songs of all time." What's unclear from the promos available is if the contestants will still have "backups" like they did in the original show. Per Pop Matters, when a contestant got stumped, they were allowed to ask a family member for help once. We do know that the reboot will feature a live band, and one member is someone near and dear to Nash's heart.
For Niecy Nash, Don't Forget the Lyrics is a family affair
Instead of singing along with a pre-recorded track like they would at a karaoke bar, contestants on "Don't Forget the Lyrics!" will be backed by a live band. In an interview with Vibe, Niecy Nash revealed that her wife, singer Jessica Betts, will be one of the musicians up on the stage with her. "I was very, very happy that my better half got to work with me on it, because she's a member of the band," she said. "That was good times filming that."
Nash and Betts previously worked together on Nash's TNT comedy "Claws" in 2018, but they were just friends at the time. Nash told People that her romantic feelings for Betts hit her hard and fast one evening when they were hanging out. "We went to go eat crabs and had wine, and I just saw her differently," she recalled.
The couple tied the knot in August 2020 and broke the news on Instagram. Nash told the Advocate she was cautioned that her relationship with a woman would threaten her career, but after shedding a lot of tears, the actor decided to share their love with the world. "We jumped off the cliff and I felt so free," she said of announcing her marriage. Her new show will also be quite an emotional rollercoaster. "You're going to laugh; you're going to cry," she promised on "The Real."