Will Pop Idol bring Czech pop back to life?
It has finally hit the Czech Republic, too. I am talking about the "smash-hit reality entertainment show", known in Britain as Pop Idol, and broadcast under different names in many countries around the world. The Czech version of Pop Idol, which is a televised national search for new pop singers, has millions glued to the screen every Sunday night.
The title of the Czech version translates as "The Czech Republic is looking for a superstar". This rather clumsy title was soon shortened to simply "Superstar" in casual conversation. How much of a superstar one can become in a country with just 10 million people I won't question here. Anyway, the show is licensed and broadcast by the commercial TV station Nova, and has all the attributes of a successful commercial programme, including long commercial breaks and high ratings.
For those of you, unfamiliar with the contest, let me briefly explain. Anyone between the age of 16 and 28 who think they can sing well enough and have the charisma of a pop idol could audition for the show. The whole process was being recorded: young people queuing outside in miserable weather, parents supporting their kids, girls crying and boys fretting about lyrics, and then, of course, the more or less successful attempts at sounding like a real pop star in front of a merciless jury. The four-member board consisting of a singer, composer, lyricist and a record company manager sifted out the talentless hopefuls and ended up with 40 contenders. It is now up to the TV spectators to choose their superstar, whose prize will be a genuine record deal.
Last week's was the first episode in which viewers were asked to pick their favourite among ten contestants and send him or her a vote by an SMS text message from their mobile phones. Over 700,000 people sent in their votes on Sunday night within an hour and a half which was enough to break a record - 33,000 messages were sent per minute from around the country, more than at Christmas or New Year's Eve.
The whole thing is just an entertainment show but I think it has come at the right time, if not too late. Many critics have been saying for years that pop music in this country is too unimaginative and needs new talents. Many Czech pop singers have been around since the 1960s and the brotherhoods of producers, composers and singers seem impenetrable. Therefore, the young people trying their luck in the Czech version of Pop Idol are a welcome refreshment in the stuffy atmosphere of Czech pop music, which sounds as if this was still the 1980s, completely out of touch with anything that has happened in world pop music since then. So I keep my fingers crossed for the kids and sincerely hope that the winners of "Superstar" maintain their own styles and bring new life into the uninspired Czech pop music scene.
