'CMT Front Row' (also: Front Row) is a televised country-music concert series produced by satellite TV provider DISH Network and cable network CMT, a subsidiary of Viacom; a DISH Network exclusive, the series only airs on DISH Network channel 101 where it is available on select Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays at 10 p.m. EST in both HD and SD formats.
A CMT Front Row season includes four one-hour episodes, each of which features a performance by a different country-western musical artist. Episodes premier with a live showing then air as reruns on DISH Network 101 and as On Demand programming until the next performance in the series. After the season ends, CMT re-airs the concerts as part of its Invitation Only series through every subscription TV provider carrying CMT as part of its programming lineup.
Like all Invitation Only events, Front Row concerts take place at intimate venues before small crowds and include post-concert question-and-answer sessions. However, unlike typical Invitation Only events, Front Row concerts also include exclusive interviews with the artists that do not air on CMT, and DISH Network subscribers can receive free, exclusive tickets to the events.
CMT Front Row's first season premiered June 2, 2009, with a performance by Darius Rucker. The three other artists featured in the first season were Reba McEntire, Sugarland and Brad Paisley. The series's second season premiered July 25, 2010, with a performance by Miranda Lambert. Other second-season artists included Kenny Chesney, Toby Keith and Rascal Flatts.
So far, several critics have commented on how few episodes per season the series offers, and others have speculated that its inception came in response to DISH Network competitor DIRECTV's showing NBC's Friday Night Lights on its 101 channel as an exclusive offering.
At least one commentator has speculated the series has been a major success, basing this assessment on a rumor that DISH Network has proposed creating a second series with CMT sister company VH1.