Viewer-voters have spoken

Last Sunday, Aug. 21, “The Voice Kids” held its “decision” round before the start tonight of its final square-offs among the top three surviving bets chosen by the tilt’s viewer-voters.

They were 11-year-old Joshua Oliveros (FamiLea), 12-year-old Justin Alva (Kamp Kawayan) and 13-year-old Antoinetthe Tismo (Team Sharon).

What was immediately noticeable when the three finalists stood side by side was how relatively small and young they looked when compared to a number of the other semifinalists they had just beaten.

Key plus point

This folds in well with our contention that one of the key plus points that viewer-voters are looking for when appreciating singing performances by child talents is precisely the childlike nature of those performances—no “tween” or teen performances allowed!

This is in conflict and contradiction with some TV people’s partiality to “better,” “more polished” and “more mature” singing, which is why they tend to favor older kids with “more experience.”

Some TV people obviously think that little kids’ voices are too simple and unformed to be “interesting”—when it is precisely this simplicity, innocence and lack of maturity that is moving, touching, inspiring and different from the older singers we hear all the time. —So, why prefer kids who sound like them?

By voting for Joshua, Justin and Antoinetthe, who relatively still look like kids, the tilt’s viewers have expressed their preference, so our TV people should be guided accordingly.

While they’re at it, they should also nix love songs for the child talents to interpret, because that really rankles—and contradicts the innocence that is the kids’ main reason for being heard.

The people behind the competition rationalize their inappropriate choice of songs by “tweaking” their meaning to include the kids’ parents, siblings and other relatives. But, occasional “passionate,” “hurt” and even lustful lyrics contradict that obvious alibi, so nix it, already.

What about the talented kids who didn’t make it to the top three? They shouldn’t lose heart and continue singing and improving.

To help them in this regard, we’ve been tapped by a producer who wants to turn young “losers” into winners to come up with a production showcasing the most promising child singer-actor-dancers. Call 564-8370 if interested.

Losing is a matter of giving up. If you’re bent on improving and aspiring, you can still find your rightful, stellar place under the performing sun!