Hanjin Tan, Della Ding, Gary Chaw and Sky Wu revealed as judges for 'The Voice' Singapore and Malaysia
Judges for the first-ever “The Voice 决战好声” singing competition for Singapore and Malaysia, have been revealed to be Hong Kong-based Singaporean singer-songwriter Hanjin Tan, 41, Mandopop singers Della Ding, 34, and Gary Chaw, 37, and singer-producer Sky Wu, 50.
The show will be hosted by UFM100.3 Radio DJ Wen Hong and Astro TV presenter Hui Mei. Produced by mm2 Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of mm2 Asia Ltd, and co-produced by StarHub and Astro, the judges were revealed on Thursday (8 June).
Tan, who has been dubbed as a “Singapore music genius”, has composed, produced and written songs for numerous famous artistes such as Coco Lee, Sammi Cheng, Eason Chan and even South Korean singer Rain. Tan was also part of the judging panel for “The Voice (Hong Kong)” on the show’s second and third seasons.
Meanwhile, Malaysian musician Chaw has won several awards including Best Mandarin Male Singer at the 19th Golden Melody Awards in 2008. The songwriter has also had his music compositions in the works of many artistes including Aaron Kwok and Andy Lau.
Taiwanese singer Ding, who is known for her ballad “Shou Zhang Xin”, among others, is also recognised for her impressive vocal range and reinterpretation of the song “I am a Little Bird”.
Wu is also a heavyweight in Taiwan’s music industry, having been in the business for decades. Wu won his first Golden Melody Award in 1988 for Best Newcomer. In 2015, he was handed the role of Main Convenor at the 26th Golden Melody Awards.
News on the show’s judges came a month after its producers faced public criticism over the show’s choice of the Mandarin language. While the show will take place in Singapore and Malaysia, both multi-racial countries, only those who can speak Mandarin fluently will be eligible to compete.
In a statement issued on 8 May, a spokesperson said,“The Voice is a very successful singing format that has been licensed internationally. In acquiring the format, each market needs to determine the specific language that will be used. We acquired the format license from Talpa Media to produce ‘The Voice’ in Mandarin in Singapore and Malaysia.”
“The ability of the contestants to communicate effectively in Mandarin becomes a necessity for the execution of the production, as contestants are required to engage the judges extensively, including during the coaching sessions which are integral to the show format,” the spokesperson added.
The show is scheduled to be aired from 17 September on Hub E City (StarHub TV Channel 111/825).
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