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Before the Rising Star wall rises later this month, Josh Groban stopped by Good Morning America to explain his twofold role on the show.
“It’s so much fun for me because I spent so much time in front of my own mic and singing my own songs, so to have the chance to mentor young singers and to work with them, and to guide them through this very hair-raising process — and also, to be on live television, to be able to carry a show like this — is a new challenge for me and something I’m looking forward to,” he said.
STORY ‘Rising Star’ Producers Consulted Mathematicians Over Time Zone Dilemma
Groban explained that the show is based on a “revolutionary technology for live television” with a free app that allows viewers to easily vote on performers in real time, with instant results that air simultaneously with the performance. “As they watch the singers on the TV show, they’re not having to wait until a results show, they don’t have to call in or text in — they’re basically watching with an app in their hand,” he explained. “America’s the judge as to whether or not this wall will go up and the performer will go through.”
Groban joins a panel of experts, which also includes Ludacris, Kesha and Brad Paisley. “Between the four of us, you’ve got every genre,” he said, adding that each of the experts will cast votes that are worth 7 percent.
One of the concerns of producing a live singing competition is its inherent need to delay the West Coast airing. Groban explained that the show will air live in the majority of the country and be taped for West Coast viewers. “The West Coast vote is going to matter — if somebody didn’t get by with the East Coast vote alone, the West Coast vote could bump [them] over the edge,” Groban explained, then demonstrating the app onscreen with Robin Roberts (with a few flubs).
Rising Star premieres on June 22.
Watch the video below.
Email: Ashley.Lee@THR.com
Twitter: @cashleelee
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