Season 1
I Want to Sing Gospel is a South African reality television talent competition created and produced by Thokozani Nkosi and produced by Eclipse! in which singers compete for the chance to become "the next big gospel star", winning a substantial cash prize and a recording contract with Lindelani Mkhize Entertainment.
The series premiered on SABC2 on Sunday 3 August 2008, at 20h00. See "Seasons" below for seasonal broadcast dates and times.
Season 1 aired on SABC2 from 3 August to 26 October, 2008, on Sundays at 20h00. New episodes broadcast weekly. There are 13 episodes in the first season.
Season 1
After nationwide auditions, gospel producer Lindelani Mkhize hopes to find one bright, unsigned talent he can turn into South Africa's next top gospel star.
Following a format similar to international competitions such as Idols, each week (from Episode 5 onwards) viewers will decide who stays in the competition via phone and SMS voting, until only one remains.
Nobody will be eliminated in the first episode - instead it will showcase all the audition highlights, including hopefuls who didn't make the cut.
The Top 30 contestants will be revealed in Episode 2 (10 August) as they arrive in Johannesburg; checking into the hotel they will be staying in and taken into the rehearsal room for the very first time.
This is the room that will determine their fate in the competition...
After they meet Lindelani again for the first time since the auditions, they are divided into five groups and given a task to rehearse and present to him.
Based on their performance, Lindelani will eliminate six from the Top 30.
Lindelani will continue to whittle down the contestants until Episode 5, when the public will start voting for the remaining contestants. Those with the least votes each week will be eliminated.
The winner receives R100,000 and a three-year recording deal with Mkhize's record label, Lindelani Mkhize Entertainment.
I Want to Sing Gospel is hosted by Thabo Mdluli.
Auditions
Open auditions were held at the following venues:
Feathermarket Centre in Port Elizabeth on 22 May
BAT Centre in Durban on 28 May
Bassline in Johannesburg on 17 June
Sand du Plessis Theatre (PACOFS) in Bloemfontein on 25 June
Cape Town City Hall on 1 July
From those that were auditioned, a Top 30 made it through to the actual competition.
About the Show
I Want to Sing Gospel is a reality competition series searching for the next big South African gospel star - a gospel star in the making but the world just doesn't know it yet.
The show holds auditions in different regions of the country whisks the best singers away for 13 grueling, trying weeks in Johannesburg, where they have to prove why they should be turned into a superstar.
The prodigious producer and creator of the SAMA-winning gospel group Joyous Celebration, Lindelani Mkhize, has the Midas touch when it comes to record sales - and it is he who sets forth a series of challenges for those hopefuls who'll be joining him and a panel of his most trusted confidantes to sort out the divas from the duds.
At the end of the 13 weeks, SABC2 viewers help Mkhize choose the one singer whose disk they would like to see on their CD racks.
The prize money for the show has changed over the years, starting out at R100,000 in Season 1, increasing to R150,000 in Season 2 and R200,000 in Season 3.
The show was hosted by Thabo Mdluli for the first two seasons, after which he was replaced for Season 3 by Salamina Mosese. Mkhize was the sole judge for Season 1, but in Season 2 he was joined by music composer and singer Nqubeko Mbatha on the judges' seat. The two were joined each week by guest judges from different broadcast and musical platforms.
In Season 3, Mkhize's role changed to talent scout and mentor, with three new judges being introduced: Sipho "The Big Fish" Makhabane, Ntokozo Mbambo and Tshepo Nzimande.
Winners
Season 1: Lungisani Ntuli
Season 2: Nhlakanipho Cele
Season 3: Nelisiwe Dlamini
Related Articles
The Search For A Gospel Star Is ON!
I Want To Sing Gospel Auditions (pics and video)
So You Want To Be A Gospel Star?
Back! I Want to Sing Gospel
Calling all gospel singers
Sing Gospel ups the ante for Season 2
All new panel for I Want To Sing Gospel 3
Seasons
Series exclusive to SABC2
Season 1 (13 episodes)
Premiere: 3 August 2008 | Finale: 26 October 2008 | Sundays, 20h00
Season 2 (13 episodes)
Premiere: 17 July 2011 | Finale: 9 October 2011 | Sundays, 20h00
Season 3 (13 episodes)
Premiere: 27 March 2014 | Finale: 19 June 2014 | Thursdays, 19h30