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The Final 1 contenders face a harsh reality

It’s a fact that reality shows can be brutal, just like reality itself. But seldom has such drama befallen a contestant in a local singing competition.

It’s a fact that reality shows can be brutal, just like reality itself. But seldom has such drama befallen a contestant in a local singing competition.

Last Sunday, after the judges declared that Charlene Su would join Jermaine Leong at The Final 1 finale show tomorrow, Su started receiving a barrage of unkind comments on social media. The next morning, she didn’t show up for scheduled media interviews. Turns out, the beginnings of a sore throat had been plaguing her since her stage performance in the semi-finals.

“I fell sick. And I was reeling from all the attention that I got on Sunday,” she told us later.

She also wrote a long Facebook post: “People seem to forget that the only things I can really control are my behavior and my songs, not the rest ... Before, the stage was a place of comfort, of release, a place I was able to be genuine and be myself without pretense. I wanted to show love through the music I choose to sing. To receive applause full of affirmation, to be humbled and happy that people love the gift of music you’re giving them in return. Now, at this stage of the competition, it’s everything but, and it genuinely makes me sad. I simply have to honour the contract and allow ‘the interests of the programme to override those of my own’.”

So what exactly happened? “I had a huge influx of comments on every single social media site (popping up) on my phone,” said Su. “It was right before I went on stage for the second round. It was really hurtful. Having full knowledge of all those comments and having to go on stage afterwards was just not zen for me. After the filming, I was breaking down and crying. I don’t think you would understand how hate feels unless you experience it for yourself.”

The other contestants tried to comfort and support her. “(They) surrounded me ... and kept affirming me and telling me, ‘Just try your best’.”

Fellow finalist Leong, who has consistently been praised by the judges throughout the competition, spoke up for Su. “I would say that she is the person who has the most unkind people (directing their comments at) her. It’s not as if she chose to be kept on. She doesn’t deserve (those comments).”

 

BUT THE HATERS GONNA HATE

 

These comments may be the result of the show’s new format this season: Instead of public votes, the judges determined who moves on to the next round until the finals, where the public votes to determine the winner.

But why all the bad vibes directed at Su? Leong said that there are a few contestants in The Final 1 “who are exceptionally loved because they’re so adorable”, naming Azhar Aziz, Isaac Ong and Odelle Sabrin. “They were such hot favourites that it seems like she took their place. I think if people put me beside Isaac and he was out, I’d get the hate also.”

“I was pretty upset over the personal attacks,” Su admitted. “If people said things like, ‘Isaac should have gotten through’, that’s a matter of personal opinion. But when it comes to, ‘You’re so fake, even your hair has to be fake’ ... it’s just very uncalled-for.”

On top of having to deal with the vitriol directed at her, Su said she was also “really upset because I felt that I didn’t deserve it at first”. “Isaac did so well and he’s such an amazing person. I was just feeling a bit guilty,” she added.

The Final 1 judge Ken Lim weighed in. “Isaac is a very good singer, and if it were personal, I’d put Isaac in the finals, because I like him,” he said. “I think he’s a fabulous guy. But that’s not the way to judge. You have to make sure that you measure up in terms of how the performance was. It’s pretty clear to me that Isaac wasn’t up to standard that night. I believe he was sick. But all these things are part and parcel of the process.

“You have to take care of yourself and you can’t say you are under the weather — any of the contestants could also be sick,” Lim added.

It may be a steep learning curve for Su, but perhaps she could take a tip from Lim, who was deemed “the unkind judge” by many when he judged Singapore Idol.

“I have my fair share of haters as well!” he said, laughing. “It doesn’t get to me because I know what I’m saying, I know what I’m doing and I think that’s the most important thing. You cannot let all these voices drown you, because these people having nothing better to do. You cannot have everybody liking you; you cannot have everybody hating you. That’s how it works.”

 

THE FINAL STRETCH

 

Needless to say, putting yourself out there means being prepared for detractors along with supporters, but it’s not something you can be prepared for, said Leong. “Everyone has feelings. I think it’s up to you whether you dwell on it,” she opined. “For people like me — I think about it for about a minute and then I get over it. It’s very important to surround yourself with people who love you and support you, who can tell you the exact opposite of what these people are saying.

“Social media is crazy, so don’t deal with it,” Leong added.

Su agreed, and she’s choosing to be strong. “I would be lying if I said it didn’t affect me. But many people have told me, ‘Lions don’t lose sleep over the opinions of sheep’.” she said. “I believe in my abilities. I will definitely be stronger than all these people who are hiding in their caves and being keyboard warriors.”

She continued: “I have to do it anyway so I might as well just give it my best shot until the very end.”

Su has her work cut out for her: To prepare for Sunday’s finals, she is downing honey ginger tea and lozenges in the hopes that her throat will recover in time. It’s also midterms week for the second-year Communications major at the National University Of Singapore, so things are hectic.

As for 17-year-old Leong, who is a first-year Communications And Media Management student at Temasek Polytechnic, her main concern is not falling over on stage.

“I’m very clumsy. And I have to wear heels. And there’s this giant hole in the stage. So that would be my fear — I don’t want to fall,” she quipped.

Where Lim is concerned though, both Su and Leong are vocally qualified for the Final 1 title. But the winner’s name will also depend on who performs better in the public’s eye. Up until now, the judges — Lim, Malay pop star Taufik Batisah and Malaysian Idol Jaclyn Victor — have had the last word. But at the finals, 100 per cent of the result will be determined by public votes.

“I think why this season was good was the fact that we had good contestants, because we were judging based on vocal quality and performance, and nothing else,” Lim said. “We did not leave it to the public to decide who was more popular.”

Su said: “The whole point of joining this competition for me was that it was not a popularity contest so our vocal ability was really being tried and tested throughout the whole competition.

“But now ... the people will decide who their winner is and I think that’s only right.”

 

Catch The Final 1’s grand finale tomorrow (Oct 3) ‘live’ at 8pm, with the results at 9.30pm, on MediaCorp TV Channel 5.

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