The Road, the upcoming competition series executive produced by Blake Shelton and Yellowstone’s Taylor Sheridan, has officially set a premiere date.

Shelton and Sheridan executive produced the series with Lee Metzger and David Glasser. Country superstar Keith Urban serves as the headliner with 12 up-and-coming musicians taking the stage as his opening acts. “Tour manager” Gretchen Wilson will offer guidance to the emerging artists throughout the competition. Other country artists will also make appearances throughout the series to offer support to the contestants; however, those artists have not been announced as of publication time on Friday (July 11). CBS has also not revealed the grand prize at the end of the competition. Contestants include:

Adam Sanders, 36, from Lake City, Florida
Billie Jo Jones, 34, from Emory, Texas
Blaine Bailey, 23, from Tahlequah, Oklahoma
Briana Adams, 30, from Winchester, Texas
Britnee Kellogg, 40, from Anthem, Arizona
Cassidy Daniels, 25, from Marion, North Carolina
Channing Wilson, 49, from Lafayette, Georgia
Cody Hibbard, 32, from Adair, Oklahoma
Forrest McCurren, 35, from Jefferson City, Missouri
Jenny Tolman, 29, from Nashville, Tennessee
Jon Wood, 28, from Wake Forest, North Carolina
Olivia Harms, 29, from Canby, Oregon

Urban previously said he “spent a lot of my underage life playing in some seedy pubs, sometimes just for the bartender. So I love the idea of throwing artists into a real-world environment to find out if they are artists. Paying your dues sucks, but there are things in this business that can’t be taught, like how to put together a set list, whether to extend or cut a song during your performance or how to work the crowd. For me, touring has always been my first love. It’s where the rubber meets the road. But it’s the only road to take if you want to be a performer.”

“I know a thing or two about singing competitions and what it’s like to chase a music dream and live life on tour,” Shelton said in a statement when The Road was first announced. “I’m looking forward to discovering new talent and giving them this platform.”

The Road will premiere on October 19. The show will air on Sundays from 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET/PT on CBS, and will be available to stream live and on-demand on Paramount+.

Amy James

Laughing With A Leaky Gut