The Cut is a 1998MTV talent series, hosted byTLC memberLisa "Left Eye" Lopes. It was the first in a line of televised song contests that later includedAmerican Idol. A handful of would-be pop stars, rappers, and rock bands competed against each other and were judged. The prizes were a record deal and MTV's funding to produce a music video, which would enter MTV's heavy rotation.

The season was won by a male-female rap duo named Silk-E, with rapper Lil' Noah taking second place.^[1]Anastacia, a then unknown singer-dancer, also made the finale, but did not win.Other notable contestants includeR&B singer and songwriterNe-Yo (then a member of R&B group Envy) and hip-hop duoEmanon, which featured a little-knownAloe Blacc.

Episodes were around 30 minutes long (commercials included). There were four separate acts per episode, and vary from individual singers to groups. Artists performed in no particular order, and after the performances, a panel of alternating judges rated the performance from a scale of one to ten. Half-points, such as 7.5, were allowed. Whoever had the highest score at the end of the episode advanced to the finals.

(Names in bold indicate the winner of the episode)

Original airdate: September 28, 1998

Original airdate: September 29, 1998

• The Cut atIMDb

This article relating toreality television in the United States is astub. You can help Wikipedia byexpanding it.

• v
• t
• e

• MTV reality television series
• MTV weekday shows
• 1998 American television series debuts
• 1998 American television series endings
• 1990s American reality television series
• American English-language television shows
• American reality television series stubs

• Articles with short description
• Short description matches Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from March 2025
• All stub articles