For what I'm seeing, "Rising Star" is trying to be something it clearly isn't. The concept of the show is what made me tune into watching in the first place. It involves a group of contestants singing in front of a screen blocking the view of the judges (Brad Paisley, Ke$ha, and Ludicrous) and the audience. However, the screen shows everybody that is voting for that contestant live. Viewers at home download this app and they vote yes or no for each contestant. The contestant has to reach a threshold of 70% to rise the screen and reveal the judges and audience to advance.
From there, it goes downhill. First off, the host of the show isn't that great to watch. In fact, he is more awkward. However, it's his first show to host so I can't pick on him too much. Next, the judges barely have an connection to each other like "The Voice" and maybe even "American Idol" judges have between them. It's almost all forced.
Oh my God, the contestants are there I say...bad. If I were to be a little nicer, I say they aren't to par to what a singing competition should be. It's more like I'm watching a community talent show than a nationwide hunt for the next superstar. Also, it seems like every of the contestants have their own weird, bizarre, or sob story to ride along their back. It almost seems like the show relies too heavily on the story aspect of the people than the actual singing itself. Once you do that, you just get bad television.
In summary, it was almost identical formula to go against the Voice that in the end tasted rotten. I really hope this show really fixes itself fast or this will be another "X-Factor" failure.
