The Voice premiered in the UK Saturday night to pretty great ratings. It debuted higher than The X Factor did in 2004 and Britain’s Got Talent in 2007.
For the 20 minutes that The Voice and Britain’s Got Talent overlapped last night, The Voice had more viewers 8.9m (36.2%) against Got Talent’s 6.71m (27.3%).
Simon Cowell, who has returned to BGT as judge has recently been sparing in the press with The Voice judge Tom Jones. The Voice is definitely the “shiny new thing”, giving American Idol a run for it’s money in the US. It’ll be an interesting battle to watch in the UK as well.
Here’s 17 year old hopeful, Jessica Hammond, singing Jessie J’s “Price Tag” for the coaches: Jessie J, will.i.am, Tom Jones and Danny O’Donoghue of The Script. All 4 judges turn around for her, but Jessica ultimately chooses Jesse J.
Wil.i.am’s promise of stardom didn’t impress Jessica. “I don’t care about hit records,” declared the young, and somewhat naive, singer songwriter. Well that’s good, because The Voice will likely boost the judges’ profiles but not yours.