Top 6 Beloved Music Competitions Worldwide and in Vietnam

American Idol is a music competition and reality TV show in the United States. The competition started on June 11, 2002, and is one of the most popular TV shows in the country. American Idol was adapted from the UK's Pop Idol, created by producer Simon Fuller. The purpose of American Idol is to discover the most promising singers in the United States through a series of nationwide auditions. After that, contestants who advance to the next round are determined by audience votes through phone calls.

A unique feature of the show is that after a contestant's performance, the judges provide feedback to guide the audience in their voting. Those who participate in American Idol must be talented singers and currently have no recording contracts or management by any music organization. They must be U.S. citizens or foreigners working in the U.S. for an extended period. In the first 3 years, contestants on American Idol had to be between 16 and 24 years old. However, from the fourth season onward, the competition raised the age limit to 28 to attract more experienced participants. American Idol begins with tens of thousands of contestants, who undergo interviews and eliminations before participating in the official auditions with the show's producers, Ken Warwick and Nigel Lithgoe. After that, they attend the official audition round with three main judges of the show.

In Hollywood, contestants selected from auditions across the U.S. will continue to compete over several days, with many being eliminated by the judges. In the semifinals, selected contestants are divided into groups. Each group consists of several singers, and all contestants in the same group perform on the same night. From this point forward, the judges' role is reduced to providing comments, while the decision rests entirely on audience votes through calls. The top two or three contestants with the highest votes from each group advance to the finals. The finals of the American Idol competition take place over 11 consecutive weeks. Each week, contestants must choose songs to perform based on a theme, covering various music genres. Overall, American Idol serves as a launching pad for many young singers to achieve success in their careers.

Fanpage: www.facebook.com/AmericanIdol

Asia’s Got Talent, the AXN franchise talent show, shattered all the paid TV rating records in the Asian region in 2015. It continues to captivate screens across Asia with over 165 outstanding acts from 15 participating countries in season 2. The world's largest talent competition invites talents from all fields and ages to compete for prizes up to $100,000. The new season brings audiences the opportunity to enjoy exceptional and diverse performances, including magic, dancing, singing, musical instruments, martial arts, visual arts, and more. Asia’s Got Talent airs weekly with a total of 10 episodes, including 5 episodes to impress the judges, 3 semifinal episodes, 1 finale, and 1 results announcement.

The panel of judges features world-famous artists. Grammy-winning music producer David Foster, globally acclaimed singer Anggun, and this year's new face, Jay Park, an award-winning recording artist, will select contestants who receive golden tickets in the first five episodes. Viewers, as the fourth judge, will vote in the semifinal episodes to determine the ultimate winner. Since not all contestants are fluent in English, they will use their local language, and a translation screen will help understand what the judges are saying and vice versa (translated subtitles will be displayed on the screen).

The X-Factor, one of the world's most famous music talent search shows, prevalent in over 40 countries, acquired and broadcasted in Vietnam on March 30, 2014, under the name Mystery Factor by Cat Tien Sa. In the UK and the US, The X-Factor has triumphed over many renowned shows, securing awards such as the Most Popular Entertainment Program at the UK National Television Awards in 2005-2007 and 2009-2012, the Best Reality Competition Program and Breakout Show at the US Teen Choice Awards in 2012. The X-Factor is also the most beloved reality TV show in the US in 2012, and in the UK, it set a record with 200,000 registrations, reaching 19.7 million viewers, capturing 63.2% of the television audience. The champion of the show will receive a prize worth 500 million VND and other gifts from sponsors Close-up and Sunsilk, honored as the Mystery Factor of the first season.

In this preliminary round, contestants will step onto the main stage and perform (singing without any instrumental accompaniment) their audition for the preliminary judging panel. The judges will announce the results immediately. If a contestant is not chosen, they will have to leave. If selected, they will proceed to the registration desk to confirm their information, receive an appointment letter, and go home. Contestants who pass the first audition will be directly notified by the organizers to continue participating in the second audition, which will take place later. In the Reunion round, contestants will sing in front of the competition's judging panel and the live audience with the contestant's chosen music in the background. In the Exposure round, each judge will be assigned to train any group of contestants. Contestants will visit the judges' houses and rehearse with them. In the Intense Competition round, all four teams will perform together every week. In this round, the voting hotline for the audience starts to take effect. The final results will be entirely based on the audience's voting results.

Fanpage: www.facebook.com/TheXFactor

Rap Vietnam is a music game show in the rap genre, produced by Vie Channel, a part of DatViet VAC, inspired by The Rapper show from Workpoint TV. This program is broadcasted on HTV2 - Vie Channel, Vie Entertainment Channel (VTVCab 1), and the VieON app every Saturday at 8:00 PM. The third season of Rap Vietnam premiered on May 27, 2023, and since then, it has become a notable event in the Vietnamese rap scene. Throughout the competition, contestants will be guided and evaluated by a talented coaching team (CV), judges, and enthusiastic MCs.

In the Conquer round, contestants choose a cultural idea or product and perform it through rap lyrics. Coaches select contestants for their team by activating the pedal. The audience also participates in voting. Contestants need at least 50% of the votes from the audience to be chosen by the coach. In case multiple coaches choose the same contestant, the judging panel decides. The Coaching Duel round pairs contestants and assigns a theme for them to perform. The judging panel selects the winning contestant, and the losing contestant participates in the rescue round. The golden hat can be used to save contestants. By the Breakthrough round, the remaining 24 contestants are divided into 6 brackets, and the judging panel and coaches vote for the winner from each bracket. Each judge has the golden hat to save a contestant eliminated from other brackets. Finally, in the Grand Finale round, the remaining 9 contestants perform solo and join the coaches and judges in the TV Gala night. The results are based on audience voting (60%) and coach/judge scores (40%). The one with the highest score becomes the champion and receives the prize.

In addition to the coaches and judges, the competition also receives special support from famous singers, music production units, dance groups, as well as guest singers and songwriters. All of them contribute to developing and promoting the talent of the contestants. With each broadcast season, Rap Vietnam has undergone changes in the format of the competition, bringing excitement and surprises to the audience. This competition has created a platform for talented rappers to showcase their creativity and personality in the wave of Vietnamese rap music.

Fanpage: www.facebook.com/RapViet.VieChannel

The Voice Vietnam is a singing competition on television produced by Cat Tien Sa Company, acquiring the rights from The Voice and broadcasted in Vietnam starting from July 8, 2012, on VTV3 Vietnam Television. In the first round, 4 coaches sit in rotating chairs, facing away from the audience. They only listen to the contestants' vocals without knowing their appearance or names. If a coach perceives the singing as good and suitable, they press the button to turn the chair towards the stage, indicating that the coach has chosen the contestant for their team. However, if two or more coaches turn, the contestant gets to decide which coach's team to join. In case no coach presses the button, it means the contestant is eliminated. In the Battle round, contestants in each team are divided into 5 one-on-one battles, with 2 or 3 opponents in each battle.

Each team performs a pre-rehearsed song on stage under the guidance of their coach and advisor. After the duels on stage, the head coach announces one of the opponents in each team as the winner, who advances to the next round. The Knockout round may resemble the Battle round as coaches continue to pair contestants, forming 3 pairs in each team. However, two people in each pair will sing different songs, and the coach will choose one contestant to proceed. The remaining contestant still has a chance to move forward, meaning they no longer belong to their coach's team. In the live show round, contestants showcase their stage presence and vocal abilities. They perform solo on stage, and whether they advance or not depends on the coach's choice and audience votes (50/50). At the Finale night, the audience vote will determine the winner.

Fanpage: www.facebook.com/TheVoiceVietnam

6. Vietnam Idol

Vietnam Idol, also known as the Music Idol Vietnam, is the Vietnamese version of the popular reality TV show Pop Idol from the UK, first aired on May 23, 2007, on HTV9. The program has undergone various stages in its production history.

Vietnam Idol takes inspiration from Pop Idol and American Idol and was licensed for the highest fee of 2 million USD, the highest price paid for a reality TV show in Vietnam at that time. Initially produced by Ho Chi Minh City Television (HTV) and Dong Tay Promotion. After the first two seasons, when viewership declined, the program shifted production format to BHD Company and Vietnam Television. From the fifth season, the program was renamed Music Idol Vietnam according to the branding regulations of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. In 2017, BHD Company temporarily halted the production of Vietnam Idol to search for new talent amid increased competition with other reality singing shows in Vietnam such as The X Factor and The Voice.

After a 7-year production hiatus, on January 6, 2023, Cat Tien Sa Company announced the program's comeback and would be broadcasted on VTV3. Vietnam Idol has significantly contributed to discovering and promoting outstanding music talents in the country and continues to be an integral part of the Vietnamese entertainment scene.

Fanpage: www.facebook.com/Vietnam.Idol.Show