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By Jasmine Valentine

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Netflix is ramping up its unscripted TV shows – and I can’t wait to watch this rebooted music contest first

Jasmine Valentine

7 July 2025

Netflix is moving into family-friendly unscripted content

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Liam Payne, AJ McLean, Nicole Scherzinger and Kelly Rowland are on the judging panel for Building the Band.
(Image credit: Netflix)

Netflix is planning to increase its output of live shows and celebrity interviews
A potential partnership with Spotify could see more live music broadcasts on the platform
Star Search is being rebranded as Building the Band, starting July 9
Netflix is looking to continue its success with live streams and reality shows by doubling down on the content it’s already producing in the space – and that’s thanks to a potential partnership with Spotify, according to a new report from The Wall Street Journal.

The partnership is set to help Netflix take its unscripted shows to the next level. Unsurprisingly, Netflix already has plans in motion for what we’re likely to see over the coming months and years, and it all comes back to being family-friendly.
Indeed, over the last few years, some of the best Netflix shows to binge have been reality TV. From guilty pleasure shows like Love is Blind to nail-biting spinoffs like Squid Game: The Challenge, the streaming service is slowly but surely building up a solid back catalog of unscripted content. But for the best streaming service on the market, that’s not enough.

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What a Netflix and Spotify team up would mean is more coverage of live music and awards shows. The streaming service has already been live streaming events including WWE and the Screen Actors Guild Awards, so moving into the music industry seems like a sensible move.

However, just how many live streamed shows we’re set to see remains up in the air. While sports and film events have largely gone ahead without a hitch, the streamer has occasionally run into technical difficulties, including the infamous Love is Blind reunion show in 2023. “We don’t want to do live for live’s sake,” executive Jeff Gaspin told The Wall Street Journal. “If we are going to do live, we should have a reason.”
On top of this, Netflix executives have also suggested that an increase in celebrity interviews is likely too. A pilot with The Daily Beast is reportedly being developed, leaning into “buzzy, non-political” events rather than fully-fledged news programming. Again, Netflix has already experimented with this, launching its first-ever celebrity sit-down talk show Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney in March 2025.
The next great music competition could soon arrive

Building the Band | Official Trailer | Netflix – YouTube

What Netflix doesn’t have, however, is its own music competition. The Voice and American Idol rule the TV roost in the US, and it’s a popular area the streaming service can certainly compete in. While untitled contests are currently in development, Netflix’s immediate plan is to reboot Star Search, rebranding it as Building the Band.

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Back in the 1980s and 90s, the popular music contest was responsible for launching the careers of stars including Christina Aguilera and Justin Timberlake. This time around, it’s set to have the same feel as X Factor UK in 2010 (which was, of course, the series that created One Direction). Building the Band will be hosted by Backstreet Boys member AJ McLean, following promising musicians auditioning to be in multiple new bands.
However, there’s a twist: acts won’t see each other until they begin the band rehearsal process, taking a leaf from The Voice’s audition format. Unlike its rivals, Building the Band will be entirely on-demand, though this could be changed if it gets picked up for a second season. Vice president of non-fiction series and sports Brandon Riegg confirmed season 2 would have a live finale, with viewers allowed to vote for their favorites in real time.
Building the Band streams from July 9, though it’s currently the only proposed unscripted content expansion with a set release date. We might be waiting a while to get these new live content while shows, such as Neil Patrick Harris’ trivia game show What’s in the Box, are in development.
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Jasmine Valentine

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Streaming Staff Writer

Jasmine is a Streaming Staff Writer for TechRadar, previously writing for outlets including Radio Times, Yahoo! and Stylist. She specialises in comfort TV shows and movies, ranging from Hallmark’s latest tearjerker to Netflix’s Virgin River. She’s also the person who wrote an obituary for George Cooper Sr. during Young Sheldon Season 7 and still can’t watch the funeral episode.

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