The huge responsibility of being a ‘Tawag ng Tanghalan’ judge

MANILA, Philippines — Being a judge in “It’s Showtime’s” popular singing contest “Tawag ng Tanghalan” is not just another television gig for veteran composer Louie Ocampo, and singers Jed Madela and Nyoy Volante. It’s a humongous task placed on their laps, one that they take seriously and with more eagerness than ever after many seasons.

“What a lot of people are missing, it’s more than saying ‘This singer is okay, this one is not.’ You have to understand we have different skill sets as musicians and singers so we also have different perceptions on what’s good or not,” explains Nyoy, once dubbed as the country’s Prince of Acoustic Pop, during a digital conference.

“We are burdened to a certain extent with the responsibility of being correct. Kasi nga walang correct eh. It’s a matter of taste. But one thing’s for sure: we have the same goal. We combine our input. If you notice kung ang naglalaban parehong sobrang magaling, nakatayo na kami lahat at nag-uusap. We have a group chat, we discuss on Viber. It’s not easy. Especially if both contenders are equally good. Definitely if it was up to me, I’ll retain both. Sometimes gusto namin maiyak. Kasi walang pumapasok sa TNT na hindi magaling. But at the end of the day, we have a job to do.”

Jed shares the sentiment, saying that while being a TNT hurado is a huge respsonsibilty, he also considers it an honor to be part of a panel that has so much input in a prestigious competition.

Explaining their daily hurdle as judges, the WCOPA (World Championships of Performing Arts) Hall of Famer said, “There are so many factors to consider. Each season, our requirements as judges should also level up. We want to see something different, someone better than the previous. That’s our biggest load – what will the champion offer in this new season?”

He continued, “Sometimes we are caught in the middle of our choices from whom we should choose based on other factors. Like, bebenta ba ito sa madlang pipol? Is this going to be a long-career for this person? Will she sell as a mainstream artist? It’s not easy especially if we’re given a certain amount of time to decide.”

For Louie, a respected composer and arranger credited for some of Martin Nievera’s hits, being TNT judge is one job he’d love to do for the rest of his life.

“It’s difficult but it’s a good problem because we enjoy listening to all of them,” he remarked.

The downtime that the pandemic provided him gave Louie time to explore other music genres, and this resulted to heightened expectations from the finalists.

“During this Covid era, my ears have become sharper, regardless of the format. Maybe because I grew up listening to the transistor radio. I’ve learned to adjust to any format, learn to listen carefully, and be able to predict what the singer is trying to share,” he said.

“Technically, I’ve been more forgiving. It’s really more of the style and who they are. Because of the downtime, I’ve been able to listen to other genres, so lumawak na naman ang tenga ko.”

As the pandemic had them shifting between in-studio appearances and judge-from-home set-ups, Nyoy took note of the advantage of listening to contestants’ performances from their device, as opposed to hearing it live. It’s not an ideal set-up, a step-down in fact said Noy, but it’s not without a silver lining.

“We hear what everyone else is hearing. In earlier seasons, we hear things that television audiences don’t. Now pantay pantay tayo,” he said.

On whether the sad plight or sob stories of some contestants seep through their scorings, Noy admitted, “When you empathize with their plight sometimes, there’s the human instinct to be lenient. But you remind yourself to be fair. You go back to being a professional hurado – which is difficult. And my co-judges are very generous, they always want to help out, which is difficult to balance in being a professional judge.”

Tomorrow, Sept. 18, the life of one of eight singers from different parts of the country will change forever as they battle it out in the fifth “Tawag ng Tanghalan” grand finals.

Finalists Reiven Umali, Froilan Cedilla, Psalm Manalo, Gem Christian, Adrian Manibale, Anthony Castillo, Lorraine Galvez and Aixia Mallary are hoping to follow in the footsteps of TNT champions Noven Belleza, Janine Berdin, Elaine Duran, and JM Yosures.

The winner will receive P1 million, a brand new house and lot from Camella worth P2.3 million, a recording contract with ABS-CBN Music, and a management contract under Star Magic’s Polaris.

The finalists will showcase their chosen song during the first round, after which three of them with the highest scores from the judges will move on to the final round.

Like the past ‘Huling Tapatan,’ the three remaining finalists will perform a medley of their musical influences. Compared to the first round, half of the scores of the contestants will come from viewers’ votes. The finalist who garners the highest combined scores from the judges’ scores and votes from viewers will take home the fifth TNT grand champion title.