I’m a 5th Judge on the X Factor PH

The mentor was more emotional than her contestant who landed in the bottom two.

I was not surprised to see Charice being that when Kedebon was announced safe leaving Allen and Joan in the bottom two. That’s the Charice I came to know after watching a video of her 2009 interview with Boy Abunda. During the interview, she told Boy that when she heard her name announced as the third placer in Little Big Star (LBS), all she had in mind was “Pano na?”

Pano na? can roughly be translated into English as How is it going to be from here on? At her very young age, 12 or 13, Charice thought about her family’s well-being. It seemed that she so seriously took it upon herself to bring her family out of the everyday hardship that not being chosen as the LBS grand champion, and therefore, not getting the million-peso prize, was devastating, painful, frustrating, and seemed the end of the road for her.

I don’t know what Charice actually felt last Sunday night during the elimination episode of the X Factor PH. There is no way of knowing the exactness of her feelings and her thoughts. All I know is I saw the same Charice that I saw in the 2009 interview. Charice is taking the mentoring of the girls seriously and with all her heart.

I’m sure the other mentors are taking their responsibilities seriously, too. I have no doubt about that. Based on their sharing of experiences in the 24 episodes so far, I can say that all of them are taking their roles to the highest point that they could possibly bring them to. I have high regard and respect for all of them. Being a judge-mentor is no way an easy job.

If the voting results could be used to gauge the seriousness of the mentors, Martin would be at the top and Ms. Pilita, at the bottom. But voting results do not measure that. Voting results do not even measure the preparations they do every week. Neither do they measure the qualities of the contestants’ singing voices, their talents, and their abilities to entertain. And I don’t think they can measure the future successes of the contestants.

So, what do voting results measure? Is it the popularity of the contestants? Is it the probability of high returns of investment for ABS-CBN? Is it the rating of the show? Is it the joy and/or anger of the public? Any ideas, readers?

To be honest, the primary reason why I decided to watch the X Factor Philippines was Charice. But as the show progressed, I saw some contestants with great talents. I was so carried away by their performances that I told myself there should be more Filipinos in the global music industry. Then came the selection of the final 20. I got very involved at that point. I had my own list which I could not bring down to only 20. Like the four judges, I had the hardest time in the girls category.

To be honest, Allen was not in my top list among the girls. I could not feel the songs she sang before the live airing of the show. Her first live performance, however, wowed me and I became a believer of her talent that night.

To be honest, I had given up on singing competitions with voting by the public. When the first day of voting for the X Factor PH came, I sent a few votes. And I mean a few votes. I regretted it. I regretted sending votes less than what I could afford. Even if host KC reiterated that the names were in no particular order, when I saw the worried faces of Charice and the girls after each name from other groups was called, I felt guilty. Allen was the first to be called from Team Charice. She was the 7^th to be called to safety. That was agony seven times over. KZ was also called but not Jerrianne. She was at the bottom two together with Joan. The judges’ votes finally sent Jerrianne home and I was guilty. And later on, I was angry with myself.

With all due respect to Joan, I’ve come to like her voice. I agree with the judges about her voice being distinct and I could imagine myself listening to her voice on my music player. But my vote was for Jerrianne. Was I biased because she was in Team Charice? Maybe. But maybe not. I say “maybe” because I’d like to support Charice and the girls she mentors. I say “maybe not” because I witnessed Jerrianne’s great potential after she sang The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and more so after she slayed At Last. I go for singers who sing to my heart and to my soul. Jerrianne did just that.

I agree 100% to what Martin said before sending Joan home last Sunday. He said Allen sang her life while Joan sang a song. That, to me, separates artists from singers. I believe all the contestants, including Joan, can bring out the artists in them.

Speaking of Martin, one of his boys, Kedebon, has become the most controversial contestant in the X Factor PH. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had actually topped the voting results every Sunday night. While there are people who blame and bash him for staying in the game when their favorites have gone home, there are others who defend him. And I’d like to defend him here by asking, “Is it the fault of Kedebon when he gets the needed votes to stay in the competition?” It's not even a fault.

Let’s be reminded of the mechanics of the competition. We all know that the voters are the 5^th judge. The other four judges come into the picture only after the 5^th judge has  decided on the bottom two. The 5^th judge actually has the power to choose which two contestants will be brought to the four judges’ table. And if the four judges cannot tip the scale, better known as the DEADLOCK, again, the 5^th judge will be called to decide. That’s how powerful the 5^th judge is. That’s the kind of power we can choose to have.

After Jerrianne was sent home during the first elimination night, I decided to be a powerful judge. I became an active 5^th judge. While the four judges experience the difficult task every Sunday night, I also have my own difficulty every voting time. I call this experience The Blind Fight which is more difficult than entering a closed bid. At least in the latter, one can have an idea of the possible participants and their financial capabilities and strategies, but not in the former—my blind fight to keep my favorites away from the bottom two.

Have I sent enough votes? How many more votes do I need to send to assure my favorites’ safe positions? Should I watch a movie this week or spend my money on votes? Perhaps, I can watch a movie sans the popcorn and drinks. Am I sending too many votes this week? Should I save some for next week? No! It’s too risky! That’s the blind fight I enter into every weekend. And I’m not complaining. This kind of fight is part of the mechanics. It’s a given.

I’m willingly participating in the blind fight even if I have no idea if my power can size up against the power of the other contestants’ voters. And if my favorites landed in the bottom two, or worse, if they were sent home, I should not question the integrity of the people involved in the counting of votes. I should not doubt the seriousness of the mentors. I should not condemn the song choices. I should not point a finger to the sound engineers. I should not look down on the voters whose favorites differ from mine. Who am I to judge their preferences?

If none of my favorites would become the first ever champion of the X Factor Philippines, I should not blame myself because I’m now exercising my power to the fullest of my capacity—I’m taking my being a 5^th judge seriously. And I would not allow myself to blame anyone, throw tantrums, nor bully people on the Net. But I would allow my heart to feel sadness. I would allow my tears to fall. It's okay if I would be more emotional than my favorites.