"The Voice," TV's newest singing contest, aired on April 26 2011, is intent on making a noise in an increasingly crowded marketplace.
By heavily promoting "The Voice" NBC is seeking an edge by ramping up the role of the Internet and social networks, employing a "social media correspondent" to entice viewers to engage with the show.
While many talent shows for singers have come and gone, the new television program "The Voice" judged solely on how someone sounds is based on Holland's top rated vocal talent show "The Voice of Holland." This became huge despite existing franchises "Holland's Got Talent" and "The X Factor."
"Voice" skips an American Idol style extended audition process by jumping into action with singers either scouted in nationwide performance spaces or recommended by industry insiders.
You might be thinking that this is just another American Idol, but the people behind “The Voice” have an entirely different and distinctive gimmick:
Contestants are initially heard but not seen by a panel of pop stars who judge using only the vocal performance itself as a criterion for selection
For their part the judges also have to compete to assemble a team of would-be pop stars, with the goal of guiding one toward a record contract and a $100,000 prize.
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It’s only when the judges Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton - who also serve as hands-on mentors and coaches - spin round in their throne-like chairs that they glimpse the singer they have just backed or passed on. They also have an added hurdle of having to drop half of their team before the public begins voting in June.
