Mirror Magazine

Mirror Magazine

Vote for a super star
Would you like to have your say in choosing a super star? Then the YES FM Radio Super Star is for you. Ishani Ranasinghe finds out how you can be a part of the process
The auditions are now over, the last taking place today in Colombo. The judges will soon meet up in the ‘war room’ to view the tapes. Rewinding, fast forwarding and rewinding the tapes over and over again… discussing and then viewing the tapes again, trying to narrow it down to the final 30 for YES FM Radio Super Star.

Wondering what I am talking about?
YES FM Radio Super Star is an all out radio talent show… something along the lines of American Idol. For the first time in Sri Lanka listeners are given the opportunity to choose who they feel has the best singing talent, the best voice and thereby, who should ideally walk away with Rs. 200, 000/- in cash and prizes.

Once the judges have filtered the footage from the four major cities, the final 30 contestants will then be called in for a round of auditions where they will have to choose a song from a list provided by YES FM and sing it along with a backing track, before the panel of judges.

The final 30 will then be narrowed down to 15… and then the rest of us get to be involved. Sri Lanka will then get to call in or text and register their votes for who they think should be the YES FM Radio Super Star. The first of its kind, the fate of the contestants of Radio Superstar will then be in our hands…a nice feeling or what?

Getting ready to put that power we now have to use, it’s best that we get some insight into how the whole process operates and why the organisers decided to trust the listeners’ judgement and give them such a responsibility.

So how are we going to hear the contestants?
The final 15 will be broken down to five groups of three. Each contestant in the group will get four airplays on the day allocated for them. The final 10 will be broken to five groups of two. Once again, the airplay timings will be the same as round one, and the voting format will remain the same. At the end of the week, the top five will be selected, and will proceed to the grand finale, which will be held on November 7, before a live audience, and will go live on YES FM.

Every contestant’s airplay will be followed by comments by all three judges, for the benefit of the listener. The airplays will go on Monday to Friday between 8 a.m.– 9 a.m., 11 a.m.– 12 noon, 3 p.m. – 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. – 7 p.m. starting October 18. The fun starts during the hour following the airplay, where listeners will be given a number to text in their vote and/or a number to call in and place their votes for the contestants. The voting numbers will be active for one hour.

Sri Lanka has many competitions that seek out talent, but all these shows have a group of judges giving the final verdict. The listeners getting the chance to voice their opinion is a first that could prove to be very well received and successful.

Many might argue it will be a popularity contest and some of the best singers might be knocked out, but it must be remembered that the judges’ comments will be carried with the airplay and therefore the listeners will be aware of things.

The whole live voting system is complicated but will be accurate in bringing out public opinion. The voting system for YES FM Radio Super Star will be installed by Dialog GSM. The Dialog Automated Voting System will be through IVR and SMS. If you are going to SMS your vote all you have to do is type in the contestant’s name and text it to the number, which will be given. When it’s IVR, it is the voice-based voting system. When you dial the phone number that is given you will hear a voice recording giving the contestant’s names and details. You cast your vote pressing the key of the relevant contestant. The software will take in only one original sequence of numbers, which will ensure that only one vote is cast from one unit, be it a mobile or land phone.

While the contestants are vying to come in top, singing their hearts out, we can stay tuned to YES FM with our phones ready to call in or text in our vote. At the end of the day, we get to decide who should walk away with the cash, prizes and the title of YES FM Radio Super Star. That’s what makes this different!

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