(RED BANK, NJ) -- NJ PBS announced that the new episode of its local music series, Soundcheck, will feature the talents and insight of singer-songwriter, producer and actress Debbie Gibson. Soundcheck: Debbie Gibson premieres Tuesday, December 20 at 9:30pm, with encores Saturday, December 24 at 5:00pm and Sunday, December 25 at 9:30am on NJ PBS and stream on MyNJPBS.org.
The special will also air across the WNET family of stations during the holidays; watch Thursday, December 22 at 7:30pm and Friday, December 23 at 7:30am on the ALL ARTS channel; Friday, December 23 at 10:30pm on THIRTEEN and Saturday, December 24 at 10:30pm on WLIW21 (check local listings).
The Soundcheck series shares live performances and backstage stories of artists and their collaborators. In this new episode, host Jen Eckert sits down with Gibson before her Winterlicious tour performance at the Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, NJ. The tour is named after Gibson’s first-ever holiday album, which includes a duet and song collaboration with Joey McIntyre from New Kids on the Block, who is also interviewed in the program.
The half-hour program features music selections from the Winterlicious concert, including interpretations of White Christmas and Let It Snow as well as Gibson originals The Gift and Christmas Dreams, plus a few of her popular nostalgic hits and more. Watch a trailer here.
“I grew up a fan of public television and loved sharing the start of my first-ever holiday tour with Jen and the NJ PBS audience,” said Gibson. “My team and I are so thrilled with how the feeling of the show translates thanks to the incredible crew who captured highlights from the New Jersey performance!”
“Anyone who grew up in the 80s and 90s knows what Debbie Gibson contributed to the pop scene of that era,” said Eckert. “She has never stopped performing and producing, and hearing what inspires her art now and this album is a holiday treat for all of her fans -- including me!”
Eckert is a Jersey native and seasoned series producer whose portfolio includes programs for CNN, Fuse and two current NJ PBS series, Chat Box with David Cruz and Reporters Roundtable.
The debut episodes of the Soundcheck series, also filmed at the Count Basie, featured ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro and his collaborators Kenny Loggins and Jimmy Buffett, followed by blues singer-songwriter Beth Hart with Slash. Viewers can enjoy more behind-the-scenes moments from the series on the NJ PBS YouTube channel and on MyNJPBS.org.
“Soundcheck is a unique and heartful music series,” said Joe Lee, NJ PBS general manager and executive producer of the series. “It digs deep into the experience of making music and offers up firsthand insight from an array of talent. We hope it will spark passion in our audience and inspire continued support to keep it going.”
Soundcheck is a production of iMaggination, Inc. and NJ PBS. Video and editing services provided by LCM247. Sponsorships for the series are available through Steve Priolo at Priolos@MyNJPBS.org.
NJ PBS, New Jersey's public television network, brings quality arts, education, and public affairs programming to all 21 counties in the state. Headquartered at the Agnes Varis NJ PBS Studio in Newark, the network offers diverse local programs including American Songbook at NJPAC, Chat Box with David Cruz, NJ Business Beat with Rhonda Schaffler, Here's the Story, Drive By History, One-on-One with Steve Adubato, State of the Arts and Treasures of New Jersey and PBS favorites such as Nature, NOVA, Amanpour and Company and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. Its award-winning newsroom, NJ Spotlight News, provides multiplatform reporting from across the Garden State on its weeknight newscast, NJ Spotlight News with Briana Vannozzi, and digitally via NJSpotlightNews.org, plus live news specials, community engagement events and daily newsletters. It recently launched its first podcast, Hazard NJ, investigating the effect of climate change on NJ Superfund sites. The MyNJPBS.org network website offers streaming programs and free digital resources for educators via PBS LearningMedia New Jersey. NJ PBS is operated under an agreement with the state of New Jersey by Public Media NJ, Inc. (PMNJ), a non-profit affiliate of The WNET Group, the parent company of award-winning New York public television stations THIRTEEN and WLIW21.