Will he be the next Superstar?

Recently, the search for the next Superstar (a Chinese singing contest similar to American Idol) in Singapore, has sparked off some controversial comments on a particular contestant.

This contestant has been in the limelight not because his singing is as horrendous as William Hung, or because he is the best singer on stage, but because of his disability—he is blind.

The media reported that he was not the only person with physical disabilities who took part in the contest, although he is the only one who made it into the final round of 24 contestants. One Superstar would eventually emerge from the contest after 23 others are eliminated by a panel of judges and also through viewers’ voting. Last week, he made it into the round of 16 finalists.

Recent controversies arose because one the hosts had asked him on stage whether he thought viewers would vote him out of sympathy. There was an awkward silence before he said that he thinks people should vote him for his singing and not because he is blind.

Later on, some viewers had outrightly said that he should not be allowed to take part in the contest because people would offer him sympathy votes and that would not be fair to other contestants. His response is once again for people to appreciate his singing, and not place so much emphasis on his disability because he did not choose to be blind.

I really admire his courage to deal with the social pressure. In the first place, it is not easy for a normal person to pluck up the courage to take part in a contest. What more for someone who has disabilities.

I think he can sing pretty well. But, quoting a local entertainment journalist’s words, “A lot of people on the streets can sing well, but how many can really be an idol?”

And unfortunately, he is one of those who cannot. At least in my humble opinion.

Let’s face it. We are looking for a Superstar here. As we can see in the entertainment sector, those who can really make it big have the X factor. Those who do not, try to shadow their flaws by picking up dancing, hosting and acting.

Today, most popular singers are all rounders, or at the very least, they can do more than just sing. They go on promotional trips, hold concerts and have meet-the-fans-sessions. We viewers are greedy. If a singer is good looking, we want him to be able to sing. If he can sing, we want him to dance. If he looks good, can sing and dance, we expect him to host and act too. The key is not to be able to juggle all areas, but to excel in all. That is how realistic the market is.

For him, I can only say that it is a pity he has the disadvantage of the lack of vision.

I am not so concerned about the so-called sympathy votes, because as long as there is support from viewers, it does not matter whether they come from genuine appreciation or sympathy. Please be fair to him. Anyone has the freedom to vote for him whether out of sympathy or not. Someone who is rich can make thousands of calls to vote for himself, should we ban rich people from taking part in the contest then?

What I am more concerned about, is the lack of connection between him and the audience. The most forefront problem—“eye-connection”.

When the audience cheer and clap for him, he will be able to sense it, and might even feel more strongly about the support because of the acute sensitivity a blind person is known to possess. But can we feel the same from him? From my observation last week, I felt touched by his voice and singing, but certainly not his expression.

He may be a dark horse now, but when will the novelty wear off? Soon I think.

I have nothing against people with disabilities, in fact, the struggles they face in their everyday life is almost unimaginable for many of us. The mental strength and positive attitude they possess is more than enough to earn our sincere salute.

Will he be the next Superstar? I doubt so. But I still look forward to his performance because he glows brightly on stage, not as a Superstar, but as a Star of his own.