NASHVILLE – August 18, 2015 – CMT today announced an unprecedented original documentary, “Johnny Cash: American Rebel” that celebrates the life and artistry of the late Man in Black as captured through the unique perspective of his greatest songs. The film combines original interviews with his family and friends featuring John Carter Cash, Rosanne Cash, Carlene Carter, Eric Church, Sheryl Crow, Rodney Crowell, Clive Davis, Merle Haggard,Kris Kristofferson, John Mellencamp, Kid Rock, Rick Rubin, Willie Nelson and more. For the first time, Cash’s children, John Carter Cash and Rosanne Cash, along with June Carter’s daughter Carlene Carter, will appear together in a film about Johnny Cash.  “Johnny Cash: American Rebel” premieres on the 12^th anniversary of his passing on Saturday, September 12 at 9 pm ET/PT.

“Johnny Cash: American Rebel” is built around 12 essential Johnny Cash tracks spanning four decades that each deliver the passion, musicality and messages against war, injustice, racism and prejudice, including “Folsom Prison Blues,” “Jackson,” “San Quentin,” “Man In Black,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” “Ring of Fire,” “Hurt” and more.  Each song illustrates a chapter in his life, as well the story of an ever-changing America from the 1950s to modern day, as told through interviews, archival concert footage, photographs and personal artifacts from the Cash family.

"Country music to me is not beer drinking, you done me wrong, darling, I’m going to bust your head kinda songs. It does have a social conscience. My songs do. It’s the music of the people, so it’s got to point out from time to time some of the problems of the people.”

 “The way he related to an audience and who he was on stage, was his best self. He had an intimate relationship with his audience and he worked out a lot of his problems under the spotlight.” – Rosanne Cash

“There were so many different facets to him, such an undefinable depth to his character. You could see it in his eyes and it brought on mystery, and it brought on a need for, perhaps, understanding him in a deeper way and this is part of the appeal of who the man was.” – John Carter Cash

 “All he had to say, ‘Hello I’m Johnny Cash’ and you knew there was no one else in the world. You don’t have any question if you heard him on radio, if you heard him on television. You don’t say ‘Who is that?’ It’s not that kind of artist that can be duplicated, fungible. You knew it was Johnny Cash.”  - Clive Davis

 “I’ve always felt like Johnny Cash was such a great influencer on my life. He is the one who changed my life. If I hadn’t shook hands with him backstage at the Opry, back when I was still in the army, I’d have never got out of the army.” – Kris Kristofferson

 “He was a poet, he was an activist, he was an American, he was a Patriot, he was a military man, he was an outlaw.  He was a voice I think for the collective.” – Sheryl Crow

To see a sneak peek of “Johnny Cash: American Rebel,” click on the trailer here.

Derik Murray and Paul Gertz from Network Entertainment executive produce. Jordan Tappis directs and Derik Murray co-directs. Jayson Dinsmore, Lewis Bogach and John Miller-Monzon executive produce for CMT.

“Johnny Cash: American Rebel” marks the latest in a series of original documentaries from CMT. The first, “Urban Cowboy: The Rise and Fall of Gilley’s” premiered to critical acclaim has been seen by more than 9 million viewers.  Over 5 million viewers tuned in for “Morgan Spurlock’s Freedom: The Movie, which premiered last month.

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CMT, a unit of Viacom Inc. (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), is the leading television and digital authority on country music and entertainment, reaching more than 92 million homes in the U.S. CMT, CMT.com and CMT Radio offer an unparalleled mix of music, news, live concerts and series and are the top resource for country music on demand. The network’s digital platforms include the 24-hour music channel, CMT Pure Country, CMT App, CMT Mobile and CMT VOD.

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