One of the most controversial contenders is soul and R&B singer and songwriter Tia Ray, or Yuan Yawei by her Chinese name, from central China's Hunan Province who has been criticized by some Chinese for focusing on soul and blues, very Western music, not Chinese.

Ray says music knows no boundaries and she has introduced a lot of people to soul music through the competition. "I hope soul will be popularized as an alternative school of pop music in China," she tells Shanghai Daily. She says she wasn't interested in competing - she already is known, but she was approached by program representatives who said they wanted quality, diverse and alternative music. So she agreed.

"Contestants' growth is closely related with tutors in the program, which emphasizes the Chinese concept of cultivation," says Song. "This is unique compared with simply critiquing performances and having those critiques adopted by other singer contestants. Here the well-known singer-judges also share their own experience and describe how they have overcome hardship. We feel much closer to them due to their emotional rapport with contestants."

Reality music shows contribute to the recording industry by facilitating and simplifying the process of identifying talent, Song adds.

As for continuation of the brand, "The Voice of China," "that depends largely on whether the selected singers can establish a stable foothold in the market," he says.

Behind the scenes

"The Voice of China" is heavily invested and strictly follows the Dutch format manual, including props, the spectacular orange and black stage setting, lighting, 27 cameras, special microphones at specified angles, and a sound system costing an estimated US$3 million.

As key props, the four original judges' chairs, each costing around 800,000 yuan (US$126,800), were shipped by air from the UK. On the base, each bears the words in English, "I Want You." When a judge presses a red button on his chair, "I Want You" is lighted and the chair rotates to face the contestant directly on the stage in back. The chairs are designed not to block sound from the stage, so the judges do not have to wear headphones.