Jointly reported by:
Phang Kor Yee Jr2Z(6)
Sofea Chang Hui Zhou Sr1ComB
Tan Qi Xuan Sr1A
In conjunction with Kuen Cheng High School Carnival, the Co-curricular Department partnered with the School’s Chinese Orchestra and Multimedia Society to hold their annual Singing Competition finals on 10 June 2022. It was an online event spanning three hours, which showcased a total of thirty singing performances from the top thirty contestants.
Rules of the competition
The event began with the finals of the Junior group right off the bat. Both contestants no. 4 and 5 proved that talent can be found in anyone and everyone, with Chong Hao Qian acing the song “Yesenia” with his deep, magnetic voice, and Rachel Yap Lamm with her euphonious falsetto and the perfect choice of the folk song “Maidens who Love to Sing”. Meanwhile, Austin Yap Ze Xuan, one of the few male contestants, wowed the audience with his confident execution of the song “Jiangnan” and garnered quite a few adoring fans, as seen from the comments in Zoom chatroom. As usual, Disney songs were still the pick of some contestants, as with Phang Kor Yee’s “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana, and Chee Wei Qi’s Chinese version of “Reflection” from Mulan.
The audience was then asked to vote for the singer they liked the most after a short video summarising the highlights of each contestant’s performance.
After a short ten-minute break, the Senior group’s finals kicked off. Songs from famous singers such as Chay Yu Xuan’s performance of ‘The Key’ and Lam Qi Yun’s rendering of ‘Twilight’ by JJ Lin, Kuan Ker Zhi’s cover of ‘This Is Gospel’ from Panic! At The Disco and more were the most prominent.
Following the short video of highlights, the audience was again asked to pick the performer they liked the most.
The highly anticipated awards ceremony was held briefly after the conclusion of the performances from the Senior group. Winners of the Junior group were announced first, with contestant Yap Lamm winning the Special Award for her enchanting performance of “Maidens who Love to Sing”. Winning the Special Award alongside her was contestant Ang Jan Enn, who performed “Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again” and captivated judges and the audience with her powerful singing.
Up next were the announcements of the Excellence Awards, which went to three contestants; of them was Law Weng Yan, who won for her performance of Stefanie Sun’s “What I Miss”, a lyrical pop song that revealed her lower tones. Contestant Tan Khim Hoong won the Excellence Award for his performance of 2000s pop song “I Do Believe”, while aforementioned Austin Yap Ze Xuan also won the award for his performance of “Jiangnan”. Needless to say, both these male contestants captured the hearts of judges and audiences alike with their singing.
Winner of the Excellence Award, Law Weng Yan
Last but not least, contestant Sia Xin Yu won the Consolation Award and the Popularity Award for her endearing performance of “Sun”, a popular song on the video sharing platform Douyin.
Winners of the Senior group were announced next, with Chay Yu Xuan winning a Special Award for her performance of JJ Lin’s song “The Key”, which showed her ability to sing jumping and sliding notes with ease. Audience favourite Wong Jing Yee took the Special Award for her soulful performance of “Unrequited”, in which she presented her mellow lower register.
Joshua Tan Zhen Kang won the Excellence Award for his touching performance of “At the Cross Where Phoenix Flowers Bloom”, a nostalgic-sounding song in which the singer sang about his hopes of reuniting with old friends. Grace Seow Hui Yeng took the second Excellence Award for her performance of “A Million Dreams”, a song in which she impressed the audience with her wide musical range and portamento.
Contestant Low Shuen Lynn won the Consolation Award for her performance of Jay Chou’s catchy pop rock ballad “Secret”, while audience favourite Low Ying Zi won the Popularity Award for her moving performance of Sun Yan-zi’s “Against the Light”, a song which showcased her captivating higher register.
Winner of the Consolation Award, Low Shuen Lynn