NASHVILLE: PILOT {SERIES PREMIERE} (TV)
Summary
The pilot of this drama series about aging country music star Rayna Jaymes struggling with both her fading career and issues in her personal life.
Country music star Rayna James, living with her husband Teddy Conrad and their daughters Maddie and Daphne, has been a hit for over twenty years. While playing at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, her guitarist, Deacon Claybourne, introduces Rayna to his teenaged niece Scarlett O'Connor, whom Rayna hasn't seen for many years. Scarlett professes her love for Rayna's music and introduces her boyfriend Avery Barkley, an aspiring musician. Meanwhile, young country music sensation Juliette Barnes prepares backstage at the Grand Ole Opry. She receives a call from her mother which she ignores, and is particularly upset that her mother was able to find her number. Rayna is approached by Coleman Carlisle, who plans to announce his candidacy for the position of mayor of Nashville. He wants Rayna to perform at his announcement, and she seems happy to do so.
Juliette runs across Deacon and voices her appreciation for his music, even for an obscure album he released before joining with Rayna. Juliette is brought by her manager to meet Rayna as a show of goodwill, but the two of them make veiled insults at each other before Juliette leaves. Rayna's producers pull her aside and tell her that she is in dire straits: her concert sales have been lagging over the past few years, as has her record sales. In order to cut production costs and ensure she turns a profit, the new head of the label has suggested that she join with Juliette's tour as a "co-headliner." Rayna balks at this suggestion, discerning that their real intention is to make her Juliette's opening, but if she doesn't comply the studio will not support her new album. She has until the following Monday to decide, and she asks to be left alone, making it clear that Juliette's style of music disgusts her.
The next day, Rayna attends a press conference held by the mayor of Nashville to honor her father, business tycoon Lamar Wyatt. Her relationship with him is strained, as it is with her sister Tandy Wyatt. Meanwhile, Juliette records a song in the studio; she sometimes sings off-key but her producers compensate with Auto-Tune. Rayna talks to Teddy about the ultimatum her producers gave her. Teddy points out that she could quit anytime she wants to, but she refuses. He lives off of her salary since he made several poor business decisions. She insists she is going to work through this herself and refuses to rely on her father for financial support due to what she perceives as his failure as a parent, calling him a "son of a bitch." She visits her producer Randy, who also produces music for Juliette, about other options for her album release, but they cannot formulate one. She insults Juliette's music, calling it "adolescent crap;" unbeknownst to her, Randy is sleeping with Juliette and she is in the next room, listening in on their conversation.
At the Bluebird Café, where Scarlett works as a waitress, Deacon sings for the open mic night, earning an enthusiastic response from the customers, including an incognito Juliette. Avery talks to Deacon about his demo tape, and Deacon doesn't seem to appreciate Avery's musical style. However, he is much more complimentary towards another young man's music, Gunnar Scott, a friend of Scarlett's. He asks Gunnar to keep an eye on Avery, whom he doesn't fully trust. Gunnar indicates that he may have feelings for Scarlett. Juliette confronts Deacon alone and asks him to join her as her new band leader, even offering to help him record his own music which he had been unable to release on his own. Deacon declines, still feeling loyal towards Rayna, but seems interested in the offer nonetheless.
Lamar plots to run his own mayoral candidate against Carlisle, whom he cannot influence via his business associates. He and Tandy decide to pick Teddy for the job, believing that they could be assured of his loyalty. Rayna rehearses with her band but in a moment of anger snaps at her recording engineer over some vocal distortions. She apologizes and calls for a break. Later she goes for a walk with Deacon and talks over her situation. Like Teddy, he points out that she can quit anytime she wants, but Rayna feels she isn't ready to quit yet. Deacon also tells her about Juliette's offer. She and Deacon used to be a couple, and they discuss their prior relationship. Both of them have regrets about their decisions and Rayna says she wants him to be happy, and that she shouldn't hold him back, although he responds that the only thing that makes him happy is her.
Watty White, a legendary country music producer and Rayna's mentor, has Rayna as a guest on his radio show, and says that Juliette has more staying power than she realizes, and that she may need to "reinvent" herself. Meanwhile, Juliette receives another call from her parents, a pair of white-trash drug addicts, who try to ask her for money. Juliette hangs up on them, apparently desperate to keep her parentage a secret. Lamar and his associates meet with Teddy and convince him to run as their candidate for mayor, proposing that they will help to disguise the reasons for his lack of money. Lamar does his best to convince Teddy he is qualified for the job despite Teddy's lack of experience in politics. He agrees on one condition: that they not spread rumors about or otherwise harm Carlisle's reputation. They schedule the announcement of Teddy's candidacy on the same day as Carlisle's. Lamar agrees and Teddy is on board. He tells Rayna, who believes he has made a bad decision. He says he was partially motivated by wanting to help Rayna with her financial situation. They get into an argument, and Teddy believes that she "settled" for him but that he's nevertheless been trying his best to support her. Rayna tells him that she's performing at Carlisle's announcement, and she must decide whether to follow through with that or to stand by her husband.
At the Bluebird Café, Scarlett shows Gunnar some of her poetry, which he believes could make good song lyrics. The two of them work on converting one of her poems to song. Rayna holds her meeting with the label head, who seems unwilling to negotiate with Rayna despite her many awards and the fact that she had been with the label since its beginning. She must either choose to go on tour with Juliette or the studio will not support her latest album. Rayna decides to decline the offer to go on tour with Juliette, walking out of the office then and there. She then confronts her father over his decision to run Teddy as a mayoral candidate. They get into a heated argument, during which Lamar reveals that he paid for the release of Rayna's first album, thus ensuring her future success. The intensity of their argument increases until finally Rayna storms out, screaming that she will not be at her husband's candidacy announcement.
Rayna goes off by herself to think. At the Bluebird Café, Gunnar convinces Scarlett to go onstage with him for the open mic night, singing the song they devised out of Scarlett's lyrics. Watty enters just as they start and is very impressed by their performance. Randy shows up at Juliette's door only to get turned away without explanation. Unbeknownst to him, Juliette has Deacon over at her house, and she attempts to seduce him. Teddy gives a speech announcing his candidacy for mayor, receiving a great deal of support. Watty calls Rayna and allows her to listen in on Scarlett and Gunnar; she is impressed as well and both she and Watty believe that they can somehow use their talent to some end. The episode ends as Rayna arrives onstage at Teddy's announcement, having changed her mind, apparently somewhat reluctantly. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: ABC
- DATE: October 10, 2012 10:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 00:42:12
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: 108158
- GENRE: Drama
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama; Country music
- SERIES RUN: ABC - TV series, 2012-2016; CMT - 2016-2018
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Steve Buchanan … Executive Producer
- R. J. Cutler … Executive Producer, Director
- Callie Khouri … Executive Producer, Created by, Writer
- Loucas George … Producer
- Bill Hill … Co-Producer
- Tree Adams … Music by
- Connie Britton … Cast, Rayna Jaymes
- Hayden Panettiere … Cast, Juliette Barnes
- Powers Boothe … Cast, Lamar Wyatt
- Charlie Esten (See also: Chip Esten) … Cast, Deacon Claybourne
- Eric Close … Cast, Teddy Conrad
- Clare Bowen … Cast, Scarlett O'Connor
- Jonathan Jackson … Cast, Avery Barkley
- Sam Palladio … Cast, Gunnar Scott
- Robert Wisdom … Cast, Coleman Carlisle
- Judith Hoag … Cast, Tandy Wyatt
- Jason K. Allen … Cast, Recording Studio Technician
- Ed Amatrudo … Cast, Glenn Goodman
- David G. Baker … Cast, Press Photographer
- Faith Blankenship … Cast, Juliette's Fan
- Harry P. Castros … Cast, Restaurant Patron
- Jeremy Childs … Cast, Albert
- Roger D. Eldridge … Cast, Rayna Fan
- Jordan Gosnell … Cast, Juliette's Makeup Artist
- Kourtney Hansen … Cast, Juliette's Assistant
- Sarah Beth Hayter … Cast, Rayna Fan
- Susan Hayter … Cast, Backstage Friend
- Steve Horswill-Johnston … Cast, Teddy Supporter
- Steve Hudgins … Cast, Bluebird Member
- Bill Jackson … Cast, Capitol Employee, Rayna Fan
- Sylvia Jeffries … Cast, Jolene Barnes
- Burgess Jenkins … Cast, Randy Roberts
- Tammy Kirby … Cast, Restaurant Patron, Teddy Supporter
- Tom Kovach … Cast, Political Supporter
- Tyler Lewis … Cast, Capitol Ceremony Attendee, Teddy Supporter, Grand Ole Opry Backstage Friend
- John Newberg … Cast, Mayor
- Melissa Nyenhuis … Cast, Teddy Supporter
- Hank Quillen … Cast, Mayor's Aide
- Jean Reinke … Cast, Restaurant Patron, Teddy Supporter
- Cody M. Rogers … Cast, Concert Goer
- Ben Smith … Cast, Mayor's Assistant
- J. D. Souther … Cast, Watty White
- Jake Speck … Cast, Steve
- Lennon Stella … Cast, Maddie James
- Maisy Stella … Cast, Daphne James
- J. Karen Thomas … Cast, Anita Caldwell
- Todd Truley … Cast, Marshall Evans
- Robert Venable … Cast, Recording Engineer
- Jerry L. Wallace … Cast, Backstage Family
- John Michael Weatherly … Cast, Henry
- Christina Michelle Williams … Cast, Bluebird Patron
- Benjamin Wood … Cast, Juliette's Secretary
- Jack Young … Cast, Zach
- L. Warren Young … Cast, Dennis