Sugarland fans in for a sweet ride with TV special

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Sugarland’s Kristian Bush knows a live CD/DVD package and a network TV special might seem quaint at a time when singles rule and fans flock to YouTube, but he thinks they are a good way to show what the duo is all about.

“I think performing live is one of the most exciting things we do,” Bush said recently. “How do we spread that and share that excitement?”

The CD/DVD set, “Live on the Inside,” is available exclusively through Walmart stores beginning Tuesday and includes a 10-track live CD and 16-song concert DVD.

A one-hour TV special taped in Lexington, Ky., “Sugarland: Live on the Inside,” airs Monday at 8 p.m. on ABC.

Bush said he and singer Jennifer Nettles made the deal with Walmart because the retail giant gives them the widest reach.

“When your basic tenet is to reach as many people as you can and you’re only dealing with two or three record stores anymore, you have to make a decision on who’s going to best support that tenet,” he said. “We did research on who sells the most live DVDs in the U.S.”

With the TV program, director Shaun Silva taped them performing hits such as “Stay,” ”All I Want to Do” and “It Happens.”

“We produced and funded and directed this ourselves,” Bush explained. “We didn’t have a lot of money. We hired a director we love, and we all sat down and said, ‘What’s the best way to do this?”

Bush said it’s humbling to think of Sugarland joining a tradition of musical artists who have created memorable TV moments.

“There’s something sentimental about it,” he said. “Not that long ago, before DVR and YouTube, we used to gather around and watch specials like this on television.”

Two days after its release at Walmart, the concert DVD will premiere in 35 movie theaters across the country.

The burst of attention seems sudden for a group that had to lay low and miss a few shows recently so Nettles could rest her voice.

But Bush said Nettles’ vocal problems, brought on by a grueling concert schedule, underscore the importance of the TV special, DVD and movie.

“There are only so many days in a year, and you can see that the physics of our bodies can only sustain a certain number of shows a year,” he said. “You can’t visit everywhere.”

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