‘These auditions are f***** up!’

February 6 2012 at 09:47am
By VUYO MKIZE

INLSA

Brett Botha was the first to face the judges at the SA Idols auditions, held at the Sandton Convention Centre. Photo: Moeletsi Mabe

They came. They stood. They sang their hearts out. Some leapt for joy, others cursed the day they ever thought of entering.

Every emotion was expressed as the first day of the SA Idols Season 8 auditions kicked off on Saturday at the Sandton Convention Centre, bringing thousands of hopefuls to extremes of joy, anger and disappointment.

“I’ve been here since 2pm on Friday. I spent the night sitting around, smoking and talking to my friends who were with me. It’s the first time I’m auditioning and I feel it’s a positive year for me… South Africa needs talent like mine,” said Charlene van Rooyen, sitting outside the boardroom where the preliminary auditions were held.

“I’ll be singing Westlife’s song I Swear It and I don’t feel intimidated by the others at all because vocally there’s nothing I can’t do,” she added confidently.

But Van Rooyen wasn’t the only confident person in the queue. Callyn-leigh Vorsyth, 20, was also sure she had the audition in the bag. She belted out soulful notes as she waited outside the auditioning room, holding the attention of other hopefuls with the pitch of her notes. While her captive audience clapped in awe of her vocal abilities, the anonymous preliminary judges thought otherwise.

Both Van Rooyen and Vorsyth didn’t make the cut, and weren’t sure why.

Between screaming profanities, an angry Van Rooyen said: “These auditions are f***** up! None of the people from our group who could really sing went through the next round. There’s a lady (talking about Vorsyth) who had the perfect voice but wasn’t taken… We need to expose Idols, what they are doing is not fair.”

Meanwhile, a confused Vorsyth said she was disappointed.

“You get eliminated and you don’t even know what went wrong. The judges should have been here while I was practising… The worst part is I have to now tell everyone I didn’t make it.”

But, being the next Idol is going to take a little more than just having great vocal ability as Lani Lombard, M-Net’s spokeswoman, explained.

“We are looking for an Idol who can speak to the hearts and souls of South Africans. Your personality has to shine through and you have to show us you have what it takes to perform in front of an audience of thousands.”

Others, such as Mary Ndou went to the auditions for the sheer fun of it. “I can’t sing to save my life, but I’m here for the wooden mic award. I heard you could win R5 000 for not being able to sing. I hope it’s true, otherwise I’ll be really mad,” she said, laughing.

This year is the first that the competition is being co-produced by TV channels M-Net and Mzansi Magic. And, the show’s host, musician ProVerb, will also be playing a more active role as co-producer of the show.

“Right from the beginning, Proverb has always brought more instinctive insights to the production of the show. He always has fresh ideas and we think his input will keep the show alive and entertaining,” Lombard added.

The next round of auditions will be held in Durban on Saturday, followed by the Cape Town and Soweto auditions.

Idols will start airing from June 3 on Sundays at 530pm on M-Net and Mzansi Magic. - The Star

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