KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The search is on for Kansas City's next singing superstar.
Starting Saturday, the public will help choose who moves on to the finals of the KC Superstar competition.
The 22 semifinalists recorded their performances earlier this week. On Saturday morning, the performances will be posted to the KC Superstar website. That's when the public can cast their votes.
A panel of judges will choose nine of the finalists, and the 10th finalist will be decided by the public votes.
Even though the semifinals are virtual this year because of the pandemic, the coordinators tried to make the experience as close to normal as possible for the contestants.
"They come in they have one rehearsal and one take. So we really try and treat it like a live performance," coordinator Felice Azorsky said. "So if for some reason on their one take there's a mess up, they just keep going and we just keep going. We do not edit that performance."
Members of the public who wish to vote are encouraged to donate, however it's not a requirement. Voting is open once per day through June 20.
On June 23, the top 10 will be revealed live on KC Superstar's website.
Then, those top 10 will perform live in the finals on Aug. 22. The finals will have both an in-person and live-streamed audience.
The winner gets a $10,000 scholarship, second place gets $5,000, third place gets $2,500, fourthgets $1,000 and the rest of the top 10 gets $500 each.
The competition also serves as a fundraiser for the Jewish Community Center, to support programs like the the Child Development Center and senior transportation services.
