For those who don't know it's a show about a former gangster running a record company. I thought it was cheesy at first, until I heard it became a show that's considered a hit. I don't think the music on the show sounds anything special but it's nice to see a show about fictional drama surrounding the music industry.
 
 
They got the full episodes on their website
http://www.fox.com/watch/390010947566/7684647168

It's better than i thought.  It follows the same formula as other big budget night time soaps.  The music does have the advantage of being contemporary.  Most shows of this type utilize styles that a re a couple years behind current trends. They seem tp be able to draw interesting cameos.  Courtney Love was a twist.  i heard they tried to get her to sing R&B but she simply couldn't so they went with rock.

We watched the first one. It did not grab us.

dubdisciple
It's better than i thought.  It follows the same formula as other big budget night time soaps.  The music does have the advantage of being contemporary.  Most shows of this type utilize styles that a re a couple years behind current trends. They seem tp be able to draw interesting cameos.  Courtney Love was a twist.  i heard they tried to get her to sing R&B but she simply couldn't so they went with rock.

The music was done by Timbaland, but I'm curious as to how you gauge music as current or not.

Current as in currently popular in the pop crowd. Timbaland gets paid up to 1 million per song upfront because his songs tend to be as close to a guranteed hit as exists in modern pop music. His Justin Timberlake albums alone would represent a successful career for most producers.  In contrast to a disney movie i saw recently where the rap sounded like it was done 30 years ago.  Imagine a tv show about a modern rock star with songs sounding like they were made by chuck berry.

The hip-hop version of Dallas, trying to be King Lear in modern dress.
 
The striking thing to me about the music is how absolutely formulaic and lifeless it is, albeit packaged like a shrink wrapped corsage. Apparently you can polish a turd into a mirror on a production line for TV.

slartabartfast
The hip-hop version of Dallas, trying to be King Lear in modern dress.
 
The striking thing to me about the music is how absolutely formulaic and lifeless it is, albeit packaged like a shrink wrapped corsage. Apparently you can polish a turd into a mirror on a production line for TV.

Has there ever been a tv series about music that wasn't formulaic? This forum has a special kind of hypocritical venom when it comes to hip-hop. The music IS formulaic....along with every pop genre ever. The video yorolpal posted with the endless amount of songs using the exact same chord pattern illustrates this fact. Other than very experimental composers, you would be hard pressed to find music that does not follow a formula. The class i took on songwriting at Berklee pretty much summed up the formulas from everyone the Beattles to Bacharach. "That genre is formulaic" and lifeless simply translates to "i hate that genre" and there's nothing wrong with that, but it's a lot more honest. I'm not a fan of polka, but it would be downright silly for me to chime in on topics on polka. I'm not claiming Empire is some form of high art. It IS lowest common denominator distraction for the masses, just like most things on tv. Just not sure how it is any more formulaic than anything else in our culture.

Empire is an always-watch show for us, but I readily admit it's a guilty pleasure, as is just about any prime-time soap.
 
Now, for totally non-guilty pleasure, there was Parenthood.  Although the music business and recording studio scene was just a subplot in that show, that was an aspect of one of my all-time favorite shows that brought much delight.  I'm still shedding a tear or two when I think it's over for good.  Bring back The Lunch Counter!

slartabartfast
The hip-hop version of Dallas, trying to be King Lear in modern dress.
 
The striking thing to me about the music is how absolutely formulaic and lifeless it is, albeit packaged like a shrink wrapped corsage. Apparently you can polish a turd into a mirror on a production line for TV.

This is not fair to say because all good art inspires other art and to say something copied something 400 years ago is just illogical.
I'm sure Dallas is not the most original show either as the show looks like pretty generic TV fare.
All of the craze for TV series is surround Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad. Which somehow spawned a ton of medieval shows.
 
I somehow doubt it's copying Dallas as some other shows are trying to claim it copied them. Everybody seems to want a piece.

What do you guys think about the Nashville series that came out some time ago. It got favorable score from Imdb. Also OT what do you guys think about Imdb and how do the ratings there match with your own opinions about movies and series? I usually agree with Imdb:s ratings.