Known for empowering people to create authentic and meaningful connections, Philippines’ top social entertainment app Kumu has just launched a boundary breaking virtual singing competition.

As a testament to its commitment to empowering digital creativity, the Kumu multiverse has branched out into discovering musical talent with the launch of its new campaign “Sing For The Stars,” an all-digital international singing competition with participation from four-time Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter Michael Bublé,and Tony award-winning musical theater legend, Lea Salonga, as the star judges. With guest judge Kelley Mangahas, Warner Music Philippines’ Senior A&R Manager.

The grand champion will take home a whopping $10,000 in cash, a one-year record contract with Warner Music Philippines, and their own mini-concert inside the Kumu app, plus a one-on-one coaching session from none other than Michael Bublé. The participants and the online audience will have a front row seat to electrifying performances from Michael Bublé, Lea Salonga, and some of the hottest names in the music industry. The full line up will be announced separately, so stay tuned.

“All the world’s a stage.” This statement has never rung truer than in this day and age. Technology has made it viable to hold a world-class, international singing contest no matter where you are in the world. Live streaming has taken down all barriers and fueled everyone with so much creativity–turning every room into its own studio setup, and every smartphone a camera crew. Being first of its kind, Kumu’s Sing For The Stars found a way to tap into the abundance of undiscovered talents, while harnessing the power of social networking to forge its own global community.

This new audience-grabbing online singing show is dedicated to discovering the best of both Filipino and foreign talents who dare to dream big. “Kumu is the home of musicians,” says Founder and CEO Roland Ros. “Through this competition, we’re discovering and highlighting new voices on a world stage in a unique and brand, new way,” namely, the all-digital aspect, which comes with two key benefits.

First is a geographically even playing field. No need to travel, no lines to fall into, and everyone can be the main character. “For many people, it’s a rare opportunity to get to perform for and learn from global superstars like Michael Bublé and Lea Salonga,” Ros added. “Sing for the Stars is the most inclusive talent show ever because talents can audition, perform, and win no matter who or where in the world they are.”

Second is comfort and convenience. Musicians play their best where they are most comfortable, and a stage isn’t everybody’s first choice. It usually comes with a lot of preparations such as studio reservations and hauling of heavy equipment. Nowadays, a lot of musicians would rather perform in their living rooms, backyards, garages, etc. Ros elaborates by saying, “since Sing For The Stars is live streamed on Kumu, everything is happening in real-time, including direct interactions and support from their adoring and supportive audience who are also all over the world.” The freedom of choice, and the level of up-front audience interaction is what sets Sing For The Stars from other singing competitions.

The first phase of the competition opened to all aspiring musicians and artists on February 23, 2022.

HOW TO JOIN

1. Download the Kumu app on Apple App Store and Google Play and create your free account.
2. Find the Sing For The Stars campaign page and click the “How To Join” tab to view and fill in the consent form.
3. Pick a song that showcases as much of your musical/vocal range and hold a live stream performance.
4. Rise through the leaderboard by gaining as many virtual gifts such as “Shine,” “Bright,” “Encore,” and “Superstar” from your audience. Tallying happens on March 6, and the top 100 performers will move on to the next phase.
5. Another tally count happens on March 12, bringing the performer count down to the top 30, all of whom will receive Maono microphones with studio headsets.
6. The Kumu Music Team and Warner Music Philippines A&R will then select 15 performers to be part of the show.
7. The top eleven will be moving on to the final leg of the competition, while the remaining 4 will duke it out to secure their last chance to enter the finals. The second runner up will win $2,000 in cash, while the first runner up takes home $4,000 in cash.

* Read more about the mechanics here.

Finally, when asked about expectations, Ros says, “we’re really hoping to find talented, breakthrough artists who embody our core values of positivity and authenticity. But the show isn’t only about creating a stage for our singers, it’s also going to be a way to activate community support and rally music-lovers on the app to come together.”

The lookout for undiscovered talent begins! Download Kumu now on Apple App Store, Huawei Store, and Google Play, and create an account for free. The world stage is yours for the taking, so get ready to Sing For The Stars.