Kay Osborne and Sharon Schroeter

Despite the emergence of new talent shows, the highly rated Digicel Rising Stars competition has not only kept its audience's interest but has maintained its position as local television's number one show.

And while producer Sharon Schroeter remains humble in spite of all the plaudits the show receives weekly, she is quick to agree that Rising Stars, which is aired live on Television Jamaica (TVJ) each Sunday night, deserves every praise thrown at it.

other competitions

Christopher Martin

Prior to the show, there was the Tastee Talent Search, which is still running, and the now-defunct Star Search at Traxx talent competition, which ran on CVM TV. Since then, other shows such as Red Label Wine Dancin' Dynamites, Comedy Buss and Magnum Kings and Queens of Dancehall have come to the fore but none have made the impact Rising Stars has.

It's been six years since Irishman Michael Hogan, an executive pro-ducer of Digicel Rising Stars, brought the concept to the island. The idea then was to capture Jamaican audiences with an entertainment package which offers young Jamaicans a chance to expose their talents.

'hot topics' for jamaica

Cameal Davis

This season's Rising Stars, which began on April 18 in Portmore, St Catherine, has yet again been one of the 'hot topics', which the public spends much time discussing.

As the competition approaches the final stages Schroeter, who also produces Intense, an entertainment feature, told The Sunday Gleaner of her joy of being associated with the show.

"It's like being a proud mother," she said, while paying tribute to her staff.

"Every time I see the show I think about the people who work on it. I'm very happy for the success because everybody has the same mindset and we work together well," she added.

The talent show is widely considered an oasis of opportunities where fledgling artistes can display their talents. Its popularity has also led to it becoming a huge revenue earner, not least for the title sponsor.

Kay Osborne, TVJ's general manager, pointed out that Rising Stars and All Together Sing school choir competition are the station's two most popular entertainment programmes.

"Rising Stars and All Together Sing are equally popular according to survey results. Magnum Kings and Queens is the fastest growing and close to them," Osborne said.

She added that TVJ has renewed its original five-year contract with Rising Stars, as both parties richly benefit from the association.

"The benefits are good as there is higher viewership and it facilitates finding, exposing and developing young talent who might not otherwise get the opportunity," she said.

past winners impact

But the ones who have gained most from the competition are the past winners Cavan, Chris Martin, One Third, Romaine Virgo and reigning champion Cameal Davis.

Since winning the first competition, Cavan has been in and out of the island where he's now writing songs for international artistes based in Philadelphia. Martin has had the most success, establishing himself as an artiste beyond Rising Stars. One Third, who parted ways with manager Ray Alexander recently, is yet to find that song to take their career to another level. However, their amazing run during the 2006 season still remains fresh in the public's memory.

Virgo's chart-topping single, Can't Sleep, on British Virgin Island's reggae chart, has elevated him into the big league.

The 19-year-old told The Sunday Gleaner that winning the competition in 2007 was a dream come true.

"Yea, man, it was a dream to become an artiste, to be somebody people look up to. Thanks to Digicel and Rising Stars that was possible," he said.

"It was the greatest moment that could happen in Romaine Virgo's life. I have to big up Rising Stars because it opened a door, which most artistes don't get," he added.

Although time hasn't allowed him to watch the current season, he admitted the vibes on the streets have proved the show is still in the spotlight.

"I haven't got the chance to watch it. But based on the word on the streets, it's still competitive," he added.

The dominance of the male contestants ended last year when the 'Denham Town Princess' Cameal Davis won and gave hope to other females entering the competition.

runner-ups

Previous runners-up were mostly women, but Davis has set a tone for them to follow and gave a hint of what the life of a Rising Star is like.

"Since winning the competition there has never been a dull moment. I still feel the joy and just happy with everything," she said.

Davis just finished playing the lead role in the musical Dreamgirls. Put on by the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company, Davis plays the main character, Effi.

She also recently collaborated with dancehall artiste Assassin for the single Yes We Can, done on Donovan Germaine's Penthouse label.

"I would be still doing a nine-to-five (at Ministry of National Security) had it not been for Rising Stars," she said,

Schroeter said she maintains a strong relationship with all the past winners, and exchange regular phone calls with them, just to see where their careers are heading.

"I talk to them a lot. I'm happy for that because they all are having wonderful things happening," she said.

"I talk to them at least every month, but with Cameal it's more like two to three times a week," she said.