The 2nd season of ‘Chinese Idol’ begins

Before recording the first episode of the second season of Chinese Idol on September 3, show producer Dragon TV held a press conference to announce this season's jury members and new rules.

Last year, the first season of Chinese Idol introduced several new rising stars to the public, including the handsome champion Li Xiangxiang, "goddess of voice" Yangjima and powerful singer Ai Fei. Since the end of the competition last year, these three top winners have held their own concerts and released their own EPs.

For the second season the show has invited singer Han Hong back from the first season, while bringing in Vivian Hsu and Richie Jen as new judges.

After the great success the first season of The Voice of China enjoyed in 2012, TV stations across China saw a flood of new talent shows last year, among them Dragon TV's Chinese Idol, an offshoot of the show American Idol.

When talking about what principles she uses to select an idol, Hsu said: "An idol in my heart is someone who can be lively for a very long time, with his/her unique charm and special talent, he/she will be able to make people want to become a person like him/her."

Hsu herself is an idol with a long career. Winning first prize in a beauty-talent show in 1990, Hsu has maintained her popular idol status for over 24 years by singing, song writing, hosting programs and acting in films and TV dramas. As someone who got her start from a talent show, Hsu said she understands where these competitors are coming from. "When I was 14 and took part in the competition, I still had a bit of a rural accent. I couldn't get my dance moves right and had no professional background," Hsu said, sharing the experiences she had on her path to becoming a popular idol in China and Japan at the press conference. "I've worked hard all these years learning things that I needed to improve myself to become a comprehensive idol."

Han joked that she was worried Jen, famous for his song "Xin Tai Ruan," (lit. too kind-hearted), would himself be too soft-hearted to be a judge, to which Jen replied that he prefers someone likeable and who audiences will find appealing, has a good foundation in music and can express their emotions through their songs.

"Our duty is to choose idols who are able to compete and communicate with others on an international stage," added Jen.

A new feature of this season is the "golden button," which can be used by a jury member to keep a contestant that didn't get a pass from the other members of the jury. Although it can only be used once, during the first day of shooting, which the Global Times was able to attend, Han was seen using the bell to save a singer that she supported.

Another change is that unlike the first season where singers had to sing a cappella during their first audition, this season permits singers the use of a musical instrument, in order to help the jury decide what these contestants bring to the table.

While other talent shows such as the Voice of China mainly judge contestants based on the quality of their singing, Chinese Idol takes a slightly different approach. One handsome competitor that day who lost control of his voice was given a pass after he told the judges of his dream to become an actor.

Unlike the tense final version shown on TV, the actual process of shooting an episode is long and exhausting. Long before recording began, the audience was asked to stay at the studio and once recording began were not permitted to leave their seats. A director at the studio reminded everyone to double check their dress and hair, and asked them not to look at their mobile phones during the recording process. The judges had their work cut out for them, as a long line of contestants came one after another to perform for the judges, explain their motivations for coming and finally listen to the jury pass judgment. Many of these competitors will end up being cut from the final version of the episode, with only the best (and the worst) performances making it to the small screen.

The first episode of Chinese Idol will hit Dragon TV on September 21.