CMT's HIT SERIES "GONE COUNTRY" RETURNS FOR A THIRD SEASON

New Cast Includes George Clinton, Tara Conner, Taylor Dayne, Micky Dolenz, Sheila E., Richard Grieco and Justin Guarini

Production is Currently Underway in Nashville

NASHVILLE � November 6, 2008 � CMT's hit franchise, GONE COUNTRY, returns with award-winning singer, songwriter & producer, John Rich, as host for a third season featuring new challenges and a new cast who are vying for a chance at country music success. GONE COUNTRY, the series that takes seven celebrities from every realm of the entertainment industries and immerses them in all things country, will premiere in January 2009 on CMT. Production is currently underway in Nashville.

The cast for GONE COUNTRY 3 includes:

- George Clinton � funk musician, founding member of the bands Parliament and Funkadelic; member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

- Tara Conner � television personality; Miss USA 2006

- Taylor Dayne � pop vocalist/actress

- Micky Dolenz � actor, musician; drummer/lead vocalist of The Monkees

- Sheila E. � entertainer/musician; philanthropist

- Richard Grieco � actor/musician

- Justin Guarini � singer/songwriter, actor/television host; "American Idol" runner up

With the goal of creating a hit country music single, each GONE COUNTRY cast member must uproot to Nashville for an intense two-week challenge. Each celebrity will again be paired with two of Nashville's finest songwriters with whom they write a country single. In addition to meeting with songwriters, the cast will compete in challenges that test them musically and physically to adapt to a life in country music, both on and off the stage.

This season, cast members will be afforded the opportunity to win mentor sessions with top country artists. At the end of the two weeks, the artist that is most prepared to impress a country audience, as determined by Rich, will record and release their single to country radio. Previous GONE COUNTRY winners have included Julio Iglesias, Jr. (season 1) and Sebastian Bach (season 2).

GONE COUNTRY is executive produced by David Garfinkle and Jay Renfroe of Renegade 83 Productions. Chad Greulach and Marc Oswald serve as executive producers. Melanie Moreau and Bob Kusbit serve as executive producers for CMT.

CMT, a unit of Viacom's MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA and VIA.B), is the leading television and digital authority on country music and entertainment, reaching more than 87 million homes in the U.S. CMT and its website, CMT.com, offer an unparalleled mix of music, news, live concerts and series and is the top resource for country music on demand. The network's digital platforms include the 24-hour music channel, CMT Pure Country, CMT Mobile and CMT VOD.

MTV Networks, a division of Viacom (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world's leading creators of entertainment content, with brands that engage and connect diverse audiences across television, online, mobile, games, virtual worlds and consumer products. The company's portfolio spans more than 150 television channels and 350 digital media properties worldwide, and includes MTV, VH1, CMT, Logo, Harmonix, Nickelodeon, Nick at Nite, Noggin, The N, AddictingGames, Neopets, COMEDY CENTRAL, Spike TV, TV Land, Atom, GameTrailers and Xfire.