Asian Idol
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Asian Idol'' is a reality singing competition, which featured winners of ''Idol'' competitions from six
Southeast The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
and
South Asian South Asia is the southern Subregion#Asia, subregion of Asia, which is defined in both geography, geographical and culture, ethno-cultural terms. The region consists of the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, ...
countries consisting of
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
,
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...
,
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
,
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...
, and
Vietnam Vietnam or Viet Nam ( vi, Việt Nam, ), officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam,., group="n" is a country in Southeast Asia, at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of and population of 96 million, making i ...
. Part of the '' Idol franchise'', it originated from the reality program ''
Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show was to decide the best new young pop singer (or "pop idol") in the UK based on viewer voting and par ...
'' created by
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
entertainment executive
Simon Fuller Simon Fuller (born 17 May 1960) is a British entrepreneur, artist manager, and film and television producer renowned for nurturing and inspiring world class entertainment talent. He is the creator of the ''Idols'' TV format, including the UK s ...
, which was first aired in 2001 in the United Kingdom. The first season was won by ''
Singapore Idol ''Singapore Idol'' is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by MediaCorp Studios and FremantleMedia Operations BV. It began airing on MediaCorp Channel 5 on 9 August 2004, as an addition to the Idol fran ...
''
Hady Mirza Muhammad Mirzahady Bin Amir, also known as Hady Mirza ( ms, حدي ميرزا; born 28 January 1980) is a Singaporean singer. He was the winner of the second season of the reality TV show '' Singapore Idol''. He was crowned the winner on 25 Sep ...
, who was awarded an all-expense-paid trip around the world on
business class Business class is a travel class available on many commercial airlines and rail lines, known by brand names which vary, by airline or rail company. In the airline industry, it was originally intended as an intermediate level of service between ...
, after almost two million votes were cast. The first season was held on 15 December and 16, 2007 in
Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...
, Indonesia.
RCTI RCTI (''Rajawali Citra Televisi Indonesia'') is a West Jakarta-based Indonesian free-to-air television network. It is best known for its soap operas, celebrity bulletins, news, and sports programmes. It was first launched in 1989, origina ...
(which also broadcasts ''
Indonesian Idol ''Indonesian Idol'' is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by RCTI Production Team and FremantleMedia Asia, which began airing on RCTI in March 2004 and became one of the most popular shows in the hist ...
''), was the main broadcaster, with the program shown live among participating countries.


Season 1

The first season was hosted by Amelia "Ata" Natasha and
Daniel Mananta Daniel Mananta (born in Jakarta, Indonesia on August 14, 1981) is an Indonesian actor, presenter and television host of mixed Chinese and Javanese descent --sometimes known as VJ Daniel Mananta. He is an Indonesian entertainer whose name emer ...
, both from ''
Indonesian Idol ''Indonesian Idol'' is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by RCTI Production Team and FremantleMedia Asia, which began airing on RCTI in March 2004 and became one of the most popular shows in the hist ...
'', and '' Malaysian Idol's''
Soo Kui Jien Soo Kui Jien (; born 31 August 1972), is a Malaysian television personality. Biography Better known as ''Handsome Jien'', Jien got his big break when he became a host on the Disney Channel in 1997. He has worked as an emcee and host on tele ...
. Each participating country had its own system of determining its representative. (pdf file) As a kickoff to ''Asian Idol'', all six contestants were introduced through a special presentation called ''Road to Asian Idol'' on 8 December 2007. Meanwhile, fans of each contestant will be able to choose the song they want their Idol to perform before the ''Asian Idol'' performance show. The Idols performed two songs each—one in English and another in their native language. In addition to the coverage of ''Asian Idol'', RCTI ran a series of features called ''Asian Idol Extra'' between late November to mid-December 2007. Every competing country sent a judge to serve as the contestants' critics, but comments from only three judges on each performer were shown due to time constraints. Special guests in the Results Show included ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' winner
Taylor Hicks Taylor Reuben Hicks (born October 7, 1976) is an American singer who won the fifth season of ''American Idol'' in May 2006. Hicks got his start as a professional musician in his late teens and performed around the Southeastern United States fo ...
, '' Australian Idol'' winner
Guy Sebastian Guy Theodore Sebastian (born 26 October 1981) is an Australian singer and songwriter who was the winner of the first '' Australian Idol'' in 2003, judge on Australia's ''The X Factor'' from 2010 to 2012 and again from 2015 to 2016, and coach ...
, ''Indian Idol'' judge
Alisha Chinai Alisha Chinai (born 18 March 1965) is an Indian pop singer known for her Indi-pop albums as well as Music of Bollywood, playback singing in Hindi cinema. She began her singing career with the album ''Jadoo'' in 1985, and by the 1990s she had bec ...
, and ''
Vietnam Idol ''Vietnam Idol'' ( or from season 5) is a Vietnamese reality television competition to find new solo singing talents. It is part of the ''Idol'' franchise; it originated from the reality program ''Pop Idol'' created by British entertainment exe ...
'' judge
Siu Black Siu Black (born in Pleitonghia Commune, near the city of Kon Tum in Kon Tum Province, South Vietnam, August 27, 1967) is a prominent Vietnamese popular singer from the Central Highlands. She is a member of the Ba Na (Bahnar) ethnic group. ...
. It also featured performances by
Rivermaya Rivermaya is a Filipino alternative rock band. Formed in 1994, it is one of the several bands who spearheaded the 1990s Philippine alternative rock explosion. Rivermaya is currently composed of original members Mark Escueta and Nathan Azarcon ...
, Peterpan, and
Agnes Monica Agnes Monica Muljoto (born 1 July 1986), known professionally as Agnez Mo (stylized as all caps), is an Indonesian singer and actress. She was professionally known as Agnes Monica before amending her stage name. As a bilingual singer who reco ...
. The production of ''Asian Idol'' was put up with the help of the production crew from ''Australian Idol''.


Participation details

The table below lists the contenders in ''Asian Idol'' and the songs that each performed. It also lists the representative judges and the TV networks that participated in the show.
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
's franchise is also listed below because it was originally in the line-up of countries for the show. Gold background indicates the winner of the competition and the songs performed.


Voting procedures

There are several differences in voting and tabulation between ''Asian Idol'' and other ''Idol'' shows. Unlike the latter wherein the viewers get to vote for one contestant, the voting procedure for ''Asian Idol'' requires viewers to send
SMS Short Message/Messaging Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS, is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile devices exchange short text ...
votes for two favorite Idols, thus allowing contestants to receive votes aside from their respective countries.Voting Procedures, Terms and Conditions
''Asian Idol'' Official Website
As consideration on population size among the participating countries, tabulation of votes are done through an "Equal and Even Cumulative Method", wherein the total votes of each country are converted into percentages.Voting Procedures, Frequently Asked Questions
''Asian Idol'' Official Website
The winner was said to be determined through 50% viewers' votes and 50% judges' scores, but this was not confirmed during the program.


Partial results

Daniel Hartono, project manager of ''Asian Idol'', revealed during a press conference that Mohede received the highest number of actual votes at approximately one million in total. However, because of the show's voting process where 50% of votes per country goes to the second option Idol, Mohede's votes were slashed by half and total percentages of votes from other participating countries were added. Hady, meanwhile, got the highest number of "second option votes". In total, Hady got 115% while Mohede is in second place with 111% and Victor got the fewest votes. The rankings of other contestants were not revealed.


Telecast schedule

To address differences in time zones (and in some cases, telecast dates), shows about ''Asian Idol'' was broadcast on different time slots and dates depending on the country. For instance, viewers in Indonesia, Philippines, and Malaysia, watched ''Road to Asian Idol'' on 8 December 2007, while it was shown in Vietnam on 9 December 2007. Viewers in India and Singapore watched the preview program on 14 December 2007.On-Air Schedule of ''Asian Idol''
''Asian Idol'' Official Website, Schedule section
The Performance Night was taped on 12 December 2007, in Hall D2 of Arena Pekan Raya Jakarta. This program was seen first by viewers in Vietnam on 14 December 2007, followed by viewers in other participating countries on 15 December 2007, although in different time slots depending on time zones. The Results Show, meanwhile, was shown "live" on 16 December 2007, with varying time slots, depending on time zones.


Pre-event activities

The contestants for ''Asian Idol'' participated in activities promoting the program during their stay in Jakarta. On 7 December 2007, the contestants donated Rp12,985,000 (roughly
US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...
1,500) to RCTI's Jalinan Kasih (Love Line Foundation) in Jakarta's Borobodur Hotel. A day later, they visited the presidential palace of Indonesia's President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (born 9 September 1949), commonly referred to by his initials SBY, is an Indonesian politician and retired army general who served as the sixth president of Indonesia from 2004 to 2014. A member of the Democratic Party ...
in
Bogor Bogor ( su, , nl, Buitenzorg) is a city in the West Java province, Indonesia. Located around south of the national capital of Jakarta, Bogor is the 6th largest city in the Jakarta metropolitan area and the 14th overall nationwide.Sandeep Acharya Sandeep Acharya (4 February 1984 – 15 December 2013) was an Indian singer. He won the second season of the popular reality television show ''Indian Idol'' in 2006. Acharya was from to Bikaner, Rajasthan. He died on 15 December 2013 in Gurga ...
, the second-season winner of ''Indian Idol'', was dismayed over Sawant's selection to compete in ''Asian Idol''. He claimed that Sony TV India, the broadcaster of ''Indian Idol'', was supposed to hold a competition among its three winners to determine India's representative and he felt he was bypassed. Network representatives clarified that although they have the option to choose their representative, they were toying the idea of competing the three ''Indian Idol'' winners—including season 3 winner
Prashant Tamang Prashant Tamang (born 4 January 1983) is an Indian singer and film actor based in Kathmandu. He was the winner of ''Indian Idol Season 3'' in 2007.


Reactions

Hady Mirza's win came as a surprise, as at least three of the judges predicted that the winner would either be Marcelo, Mohede, or Victor. There were claims that Hady may have gotten the crucial second vote outside of his home country, wherein it is claimed that votes for strong candidates were paired with weak ones like Hady and Sawant who were trailing in Asian Idol's online survey. This voting tactic was said to avoid viewers' home Idols be beaten by their closest rivals. In Singapore, the victory stirred hopes of a revival of the country's golden age of music during the 1960s and 70's.
Taufik Batisah Muhammad Taufik bin Batisah ( Jawi: محمد تيوفيك بن بتيسه; born 10 December 1981) is a Singaporean singer-songwriter best known for winning the first season of the reality TV series ''Singapore Idol''. Early life and education ...
, first season winner of ''Singapore Idol'', said that the win is something their country should be proud of and hopefully this would "open the eyes and ears" of listeners. However, there were viewers in Singapore who still doubt Hady's singing ability, claiming that his performance in ''Asian Idol'' was not as strong as other competitors and it was a matter of "luck over talent". ''Singapore Idol'' judge Ken Lim reiterated that "looks and voice" had won the title for Hady. Meanwhile, Hady shrugged off speculations that he won because he was a "non-threat", but considered himself an
underdog An underdog is a person or group in a competition, usually in sports and creative works, who is largely expected to lose. The party, team, or individual expected to win is called the favorite or top dog. In the case where an underdog wins, the ...
and that he did "pretty well" in terms of sincerity and connecting with the audience. Filipino TV and movie critic Nestor U. Torre mentioned that he was not surprised about Hady's win, even lauding him for his "impressively cool yet dynamic" performances. He also appreciated Victor and Phuong Vy's performances. While Torre was also equally impressed by Marcelo and Mohede's voices, he also said that their girth worked to their disadvantage. On Sawant, Torre noted that his "balladeer" projection was "less dynamic" with his country's large voting population failing him. Despite the surprises and disappointments in the competition, Torre regarded ''Asian Idol'' a success as it produced relatively new talents in the Asian and international music scene.


Season 2

Fotini Paraskakis,
FremantleMedia Fremantle (; formerly FremantleMedia) is a British multinational television production and distribution company based in London. Fremantle takes its name from Fremantle International, acquired by predecessor company All American Television in ...
Asia's production director (which holds the ''Idol'' franchises in the Philippines, India, Indonesia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia) reported that the second season will not take place in 2008, and is planning to launch on 2009 due to several reasons (Kazakhstan, Malaysian and Singapore franchises ended, relaunch of the Philippine franchise, delayed launch of India and Vietnam, cancellation of the Pakistan franchise). Thailand (which will have its franchise soon) is reported to participate in the event.


References

{{Idol series Television series by Fremantle (company) 2007 Indonesian television series debuts 2007 Indonesian television series endings Non-British television series based on British television series