Online Show Scouts for New Singing Talent

By Sherif Awad Zee3 Mawhbtak (Broadcast Your Talent), the first online Egyptian talent show scouting for singing talents from different governorates, is fast becoming one of the most visited sites since it was launched a few months ago. Shot in a booth that travels to a new governorate every week, each new episode is uploaded online to receive voting on the show’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. Contestants with the highest viewer votes will have the chance to record a professional studio song and shoot a music video. Zee3 Mawhbtak is a franchise of popular online show Zee3 Enta, which follows a mobile booth travelling around Egypt and stopping to ask people to comment on daily events happening across the country. Both shows, the original and the franchise, are the brainchild of producer Sherif Hosny, founder of PMC, a social awareness company with a number of political campaigns utilizing social media as their main platform under its belt. PMC’s flagship project Zee3 Enta was launched in 2010, quickly catching the eye of TubeStar Network. The latter approached Hosny to create Zee3 Mawhbtak, the first season of which features 10 eight-minute episodes filmed in 10 Egyptian governorates and shot with 200 talents. “We aim for maximum reach to target spectators of a certain age at any time since broadcasting a show on television is constrained by a certain time slot,” explains Hosny. “For online content like ours, viewers can watch or re-watch the show as much as they like. Moreover, from a budget point of view, our online platform allowed us to launch the show smoothly on Facebook and YouTube without building big sets or seeking sponsors.” The format of the setup is simple: Before going to an Egyptian governorate, the team of the show launches a weekly internet call announcing that their booth will be visiting. Anyone who thinks they have a good voice can come and try out at the booth after registering online with a short sound clip. The clip is posted to Facebook and the contestant that gets the most votes is presented with a Golden Ticket allowing him or to cut through the long lines and get to the booth. The two contestants from each governorate with the highest scores get to record a professional audio then a music video to help him or launch their career. “At the end of each season, we will have ten finalists with ten professional music videos who will compete for another first and big prize through online voting,” explains Hosny. Zee3 Mawhbtak is presented by actor Ahmed El-Garhy, a regular on the cast of Elbernameg hosted by Bassem Youssef. Before the plug was pulled on Elbernameg, El-Garhy moved on to co-star in a comedy horror film called Hasalena El-Ro’b ( We Are Terrified), an Egyptian spoof of the Scream and Scary Movie series. The film flopped at the box office, and El-Garhy’s casting calls dried up. Luckily Hosny, who collaborated with El-Garhy on Zee3 Enta, asked to him to return in Zee3 Mawhbtak, recognizing “El-Garhy’s special comic way in approaching people and presenting the show.” El-Garhy is thrilled to be back on the new show. “I am happy that I help to discover talents outside of Cairo and Alexandria where the cultural events and TV activities are usually concentrated,” he explains. “Let’s not forget that our great singers like Abdel-Halim Hafez and Umm Kolthoum came from outside Cairo. I also like meeting people and chatting with them for the show because many Egyptian have really great talents that go undiscovered — not only in music and singing, but also in acting, football and so on. I think the show acts like a tool to present these people to the audiences across Egypt and helps to find new talents.” But could established singers feel threatened by the newly discovered “talents”? Neither Hosny nor El-Garhy think that their show, because it might stumble on new music talent, will generate envy from musicians currently in the spotlight. “The show is for all audiences and all the decisions are made by the clicks of their mouse,” explains El-Garhy. “Another element is the acceptance and charisma. Some who come to the show are talented in singing and composing but sometimes they are not that appreciated or liked by the audience,” adds Hosny. “The show allows anyone to step into the limelight and become a professional singer, even those who have not studied music. Maybe later they can consolidate their talents with musical studies.” Hosny says the show’s popularity is so overwhelming he’s thinking of bringing Zee3 Mawhbtak to the small screen. Follow the show at zee3mawhbtak.com for their latest news.