Harmony of judges makes “˜The Voice’ stand out from other reality singing competitions

NBC made a wise decision to premiere the sophomore season of its breakout reality hit show “The Voice” after Sunday’s Super Bowl, as more than 37 million people stuck around to watch judges Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Blake Shelton and Adam Levine audition hopeful singers.

The surprising performance of “The Voice” offsets news about the slipping ratings of a fellow reality competition show about singing ““ the original show that launched the massive careers of Kelly Clarkson and Carrie Underwood ““ “American Idol.”

Bad news also surfaced about the show’s fall rival “The X Factor,” where network producers for Fox announced that judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger would not be returning for season two of the competition program.

So what’s going wrong for the “The X Factor” and “American Idol,” two shows shepherded by Simon Cowell ““ and more importantly, what’s going well for “The Voice?”

Let’s start with “The X Factor.” The show, a Simon Cowell British import, just completed its eighth season in the UK and is responsible for launching the career of Leona Lewis.

However, by bringing the show to the U.S. last fall, Cowell not only gave himself direct competition and obvious opportunities for comparisons with his former show, “American Idol,” but he also brought another singing competition show to the already crowded marketplace. “The X Factor” and its lukewarm ratings attest to the notion that Cowell’s caustic wit doesn’t necessarily translate into huge ratings and interest, at least not anymore.

One important component of “The Voice” may be that the judges are recognized as formidable pop talents. Audiences trust Levine and Aguilera and value their opinions because they have had sustained success in pop music. Both capitalized on their exposure from the show to release their No. 1 hit “Moves Like Jagger” last summer, and they are both relatively big names in their own right.

In contrast, “The X Factor” had Paula Abdul, a singer who was popular in her time, but was always thought of more as a dancer and performer. Scherzinger, who rose to fame as the lead singer of the Pussycat Dolls, has been trying to launch her solo career for two years with little success. Even Jennifer Lopez had a stagnating career until it was reinvigorated with her dance anthem “On the Floor,” which she performed on “American Idol.”

The discrepancy is clear, but if this is the case, have these shows transformed into becoming centered on the judges rather than the unrecognized talent they’re trying to discover?

“The Voice” certainly seems to capitalize on the dynamic of the judges as they bicker and tease each other in an effort to get singers to join their respective teams.

However, the addition of Lopez and Steven Tyler arguably reinvigorated “American Idol” last year because their TV chemistry seemed refreshing and light-hearted, as opposed to the awkward past additions of Kara DioGuardi and Ellen DeGeneres.

Maybe it’s how these shows recruit their talent that offers the greatest distinction. “The Voice” holds blind auditions, where the judges turn their seats around and recruit singers for their teams based only on the performers’ respective voices.

Here the judges are judging purely on talent alone, and this is directly contrasted to “American Idol” and “The X Factor,” in which the judges often judge the singers based on stage presence and appearance.

The elimination process on “The Voice” also heavily involves the judges, and America only gets to vote in the final stages of the show’s run. Maybe greater involvement of the judges brings another fresh element to the genre.

Do you think “The Voice” values the personality of the judges over the undiscovered talent on the show? Is this what really appeals to audiences? Email Palumbo at [email protected]. “What Went Wrong” runs every Friday.