THE VOICE WITH TWONATIONS
THE quartet are big names in the singing circuit. Sabah-born singer-songwriter Gary Chaw, Taiwanese crooner Sky Wu, Singapore-born, Hong Kong-based singer-actor Hanjin Tan and Chinese balladeer Della Ding Dang.
They will be picking and coaching the contestants in the new Singapore/Malaysia edition of
The four vocal coaches looked less intimidating in person and shared great chemistry during a press conference for the reality-based singing competition at Hotel Jen Puteri Harbour in Johor Baru.
The media also got to tour the actual set in Pinewood Iskandar Malaysia Studios. “It’s all very overwhelming. The contestants remind me of when I first started out as singer. I was blessed to have many people supporting my singing career. I hope the show will give the newbies an opportunity to shine,” said Chaw.
All the coaches agreed that first impressions mattered.
“Besides having great vocals, onstage charisma is really important,” said Chaw.
Tan added: “There are many budding singers who make their living performing at local clubs and bars. They don’t have the opportunity that we enjoy, reaching out to the masses. But with the show, I hope that they will go places with their talents. I think
is a great place to show the world what you’ve got.”
Tan was also looking forward to sharing his knowledge in music. “Sharing is caring and I’d love to share what I have learnt all these years with my team,” he said.
Tan added that he even welcomed the contestants to sing their popular songs. “Of course they can sing our songs, but on one condition: The contestants must sing it in their own style. We want unique interpretations,” he said.
Earlier, the show drew flak among netizens when its producers had called for participants “fluent in Mandarin” and “are able to perform Mandarin songs”. Chaw however dismissed the criticism.
“Everyone is entitled to their opinion and I respect that. There are always two sides to a coin,” he said.
Chaw added, “This is just the first season. Going forward, perhaps the producers will work with the franchise rights holder to create the show in other languages.”
The show will begin with the blind audition round, where contestants are judged solely on their singing.
Like its predecessors, the contestants will perform with the coaches facing away from them. And if the coaches fancy what they hear, they can press the red button in front of them and the rotating chair they are seated in will spin around to face the contestant for the first time. Following that, the contestants will be mentored by the coaches and engage in several singing battles.
The Singapore/Malaysia edition is coproduced by mm2 Entertainment, Astro and Singapore’s Starhub. The original show,
was first aired in 2010 in Dutch. The American edition followed in 2012, featuring judges/coaches including Maroon 5’s Adam Levine, country singer Blake Shelton, award-winning singers Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams. The US edition is currently in its 12th edition.
The new show, to be co-hosted by Singapore’s SPH Radio UFM100.3 DJ Huang Wenhong and Astro’s TV personality Siow Hui Mei, premieres on Sept 17 at 8.30pm on Astro AEC (channel 301 and 306 HD).