Project Superstar Finale

The good:

• The competition format was well thought out, with the finalists going head-to-head in five rounds ala boxing. Because each round offered a different challenge to the performers, both finalists were really tested on their versatility and technique. I especially liked the a capella and duet/trio singing segments.
• The original song written for Kelvin Tan was very pleasant on the ear.
• JJ Lin was cool, professional and the consumate musician.
• Slight slip-up by Jeff aside, the two co-hosts did a thoroughly professional job. Nothing earth-shattering, but they got the job done.
  
• The also-rans (aka as the eliminated contestants) were energetic and clearly having a good time during their group performance slots. The energy level kept the crowd in high spirit while the finalists were resting or having wardrobe changes.
• We got to see beaten male and female finalists, Junyang and Xinhui singing solo and doing a duet together. Both in very good voice, especially Xinhui. The two of them also had some on-stage chemistry going there!
• Kelvin sang his first two songs very well, and was especially good on his a capella number, with some help from his back-up brothers. When the boy isn't suffering from nerves, he can sound great.
• Kelly showed her all-round performance skills; dancing, posing and singing up a storm. Her range of music was rather impressive - up-tempo, jazzy, R&B type sounds, dance beats and an old-fashioned love ballad. She pulled off her final power ballad MUCH better than I expected. A huge improvement over her ladies' final performance two weeks back.
• The judges being refreshingly frank and critical when the performances called for it. They started out pretty much handing out bouquets all over the place and I thought we were in for a repeat of Singapore Idol' finale. Then they told Kelly she was slightly off during her a capella segment and pointed out Kelvin's lack of proper technique when trying to do R&B riffing. Maybe next year, Ken Lim and gang will be similarly less PC during Singapore Idol?

The not-so-good:

• Anthony Png's continued nonsensical non-jokes. He must be the only person who finds himself amusing. If they do Project Superstar again next year, can they get him changed - or have a no-jokes clause in his contract?
• Kelvin's loss of steam towards the end. His final two songs were quite painful. It was a pity, because the songs were lovely and he just didn't do them justice at all. You could see his visible loss of confidence during the end of his duet/trio performance, and it just went downhill from there.
• On a related note, Kelvin's rather one-dimensional choice of songs. All his songs, bar the duet/trio, were slow-tempo major-key ballads. He cannot sing a string of such songs in concert; there's only so much of sameness that an audience can take.
• The judging which had no effect on the final result. It was entertaining and insightful to hear what the professionals had to say, but maybe they should have left off the part where the judges chose their winners for each round. I think "losing" 2 of the first 3 rounds contributed to Kelvin's breakdown in his final two songs.
• The dancing by the eliminated contestants. They tried hard and they should get credit for that, but boy, some of the lack of co-ordination was not pretty to behold. Worse, some of this people can't keep in tune while standing still, so having them dance and sing at the same time is NOT such a bright idea.
• The unco-ordinated "cheering" of the fan groups. Shouldn't they have rehearsed this a bit more? Kelvin's fans were particularly incomprehensible; whenever they were called to cheer, I heard just a wall of noise, with only two words being discernible - Wei Lian. And I am guessing here.
  

The uncomfortable:

• This is going to sound totally insensitive but I have to say it. Staging this finale at Singapore Indoor Stadium, with all the bright lights, razzle-dazzle and huge audience, highlighted how much Kelvin sticks out like a sore thumb in this competition. Because he isn't able to move much, he looked awkward and lost on that vast stage.
• While the eliminated contestants were prancing around doing their group numbers, I found myself wondering how they would have choreographed around Kelvin if he had been amongst them. Perhaps it was just as well that he was one of the finalists and performed solo most of the night.
• During the duet/trio with JJ Lin and Kelly, Kelvin was put at a great disadvantage. Not only because he could not visually communicate with his partners, but because the style of music was out of his depth. JJ was grooving and riffing, while Kelvin tried valiantly to squeeze some R&B out of his balladeer's soul. It just did not work. Of course, part of the point was versatility, and the expectation was for the finalists to adjust to their singing partners. It just seemed far to much to ask of Kelvin.
• Kelly outperformed Kelvin throughout most of the night, but there was always the feeling that the performances counted for nothing. Even if Kelvin had forgotten his lines and stopped dead in the middle of a song, or had his voice crack, he would still have won. This competition was dead in the water the night that Kelvin survived his horrible "old song with new twist" disaster.

Project Superstar was a great success, if media coverage post event is anything to go by. The marketing types have decided to use Kelvin's blindness as a selling point, which is good strategic thinking, I suppose. I also think it is rather insulting to Kelvin as a musician and an artiste, but he seems quite happy to go along with it. The reality of the music industry is that success can be shortlived, so maybe he is smart to milk it for what it is worth while he can. I wish him well.

Kelly is something of the forgotten woman in this media explosion. I suppose it is difficult to not fade into the background when Kelvin has such a compelling Cinderella story. It is not her fault that she is conventionally attractive and talented and has a typical background. Wholesome normality just does not make good media coverage material. Remember Sly and his mother's legal problems? Or Sly and his ROM debacle with Maia Lee? Kelly needs a little scandal to get the column inches. But she's got her recording contract (and seemingly with the higher profile of the two sponsoring recording companies), her youth and good looks. That is as great a start as anyone could get.