'Cash Cab' returns with host Adam Growe giving us a musical spin on the game show

Famed travelling game show Cash Cab, hosted by Adam Growe, came back to Toronto to film a new version of the show, Cash Cab Music (premiering March 4 at 8:00 p.m. ET on GameTV), since the original Canadian series ended in 2015.

"There's a little bit of that, 'Can I still do it?' And then of course, it's in my blood, it's just what I live and breathe and after doing eight seasons, even though it had been almost 10 years since we made a new episode, because the show was in repeat so much ... it never really stopped," Growe told Yahoo Canada. "But certainly during the pandemic, there was another spike to the Cash Cab fandom because people were looking for something positive... and fun."

Cash Cab Music, as the name suggests, is a version of the show where the trivia is all based on music.

"There's a Cash Cab in many different countries around the world and this is the first time that there's been a departure from the just baseline format," Growe said.

"Music has a connection to us in terms of critical junctures in our lives, our first loves, sometimes when we're down and we need a little bit of a pick me up. ... There's such a spectrum of things you can do with questions about music, you can go to movie soundtracks, you can go to television, celebrities, pop culture."

But the Cash Cab Music participants aren't alone in their gameplay. A new element was added, where participants can go to social media to try to get help getting to the right answer.

"It is a kind of fourth wall thing, because we're making the show, ... we haven't edited a single episode, we haven't promoted Cash Cab Music, and all of a sudden I'm live on Instagram saying, 'Hey, I'm in the Cash Cab with contestants who need your help with the question,'" Growe said.

There is one more change in this version of the game. Players still have a chance to double their money at the end of their ride, but it's a karaoke challenge in which they need to sing out the answer.

"I call it scream singing," Growe said. "There's something that happens at karaoke anyway, but certainly when the stakes are high and there's money, and you're excited, even if you're actually a good singer, the adrenaline just gets you going and the joy takes over."

"They might not sound great, but it's infectious to be around people who are having that much fun."

How to find the Cash Cab

Looking back at his time starting out as the Cash Cab host, Growe, who's also a comedian, said the best asset he had to take on this job was being a father with young kids.

"I had to entertain in the backseat on road trips," Growe said. "Producers wanted to know that I could navigate, even just hitting a curb is going to throw a camera off or something like that."

For anyone who hopes to be able to spot the Cash Cab to participate on the show, Growe said it really just comes down to luck, but they do try to stick to a route in populated areas.

"There are some really, really serious fans of the show that have communicated with me over the years, and they go, 'I'm finally back in Toronto, ... where do you drive around?' I go, well pro tip, not currently in production," Growe said. "I don't want to be too aloof, but generally what I say, if we are in production, I say you've got to be lucky. And that's the truth."

"The longest window of time where we've been making the show is between six and eight weeks, and it's not every day. ... You eliminated Saturday nights, ... we love the personality, but that's not the night we want to be trying to get contestants. ... If we are in production, all I can tell you [is] you got to be lucky."