It’s not often that canceled TV shows get a second life. But after more than two years off the air, NBC’s scrappy vocal competition show “The Sing-Off” returns for a fourth season on Monday at 9 p.m. (Ch. 4) with a two-hour premiere after “The Voice.”
After ratings collapsed in its third season when it expanded to a weekly format, the a capella competition is back as a two-week, seven-episode holiday strip (the finale airs Dec. 23). In addition to returning judges Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman (Nick Lachey also reprises his role as host), the show has added Jewel as its new female judge.
“It feels great,” Stockman tells The Post of the show coming back. “That . . . is a testament of how heartfelt, and I guess you could say personal, the show has become for so many people, and for the network.”
Since “The Sing-Off” last aired in 2011, the landscape of TV singing competition shows has changed — “The Voice” has established itself as a year-round hit, while the ratings for “American Idol” have dropped and “The X Factor” has proven a non-factor with viewers. But “The Singoff’s” a capella format (no instruments) means the contestants’ talent has to stand on its own.
“That’s the beauty of the show — it’s not promoted by an ego or some overly characterized judge or anything like that,” Stockman says. “It’s just about the music. That’s what makes it feel good. You don’t feel any sense of sensationalism. It’s just about music and all of them doing it well.”
Season Four also has a new executive producer — reality hitmaker Mark Burnett (“The Voice,” “Survivor”) — who has brought some of that other NBC singing show’s energy to “The Sing-Off,” like incorporating a lot more performances from the judges and host themselves.
Another change is the addition of the “Ultimate Sing-Off” — a battle-style elimination between the bottom two groups each week who perform the same song in their own style for a chance to stay on the show.
“They really give it their all when they’re put in that pressure position,” Stockman says. “It heightens up the drama a little bit and that’s what’s cool about it.”
And for the first time, a country group will be among the 10 a capella groups competing for a $100,000 prize and a recording contract. Other contestants this season include a gospel group, two all-male college choirs (from Princeton and the University of Kentucky), a Filipino boy band, an older gentlemen doo-wop group, and an all-female group from New York City.
“The mixture’s really, really good,” Stockman says, “and that’s what makes this season probably the most diverse out of all of them because you’re gonna get all types of flavors this year.”