Mirchi, India’s leading entertainment company and Smule Inc, the global leader in interactive music creation, today announced the highly anticipated third season of “Smule Mirchi Cover Star,” India’s largest digital singing competition. This announcement comes on the heels of record turnout in Season 2, with more than 50,000 people participating in the singing talent hunt series.

Building on two successful seasons, the singing reality competition series offers the unprecedented opportunity to bring forth diverse musical talent from across India to the forefront, highlighting the country’s rich multicultural, multi-demographic milieu. The search for India’s next singing sensation offers talented singers, the chance to sing under the spotlight in front of some of the biggest names in the Indian music industry and make their dreams come true. The winner of “Smule Mirchi Cover Star” will perform at the 13th Annual Mirchi Music Awards in Mumbai, in the presence of iconic music industry legends. The winner will also be bestowed with an opportunity to be featured in a music video and launch a song launch with a reputed music label in addition to a cash prize of Rs. 3 lacs. 

The 45- days talent hunt is a coveted launch pad platform for singers looking to share their vocal skills and actively showcase their talent. All of this is made easier by simply downloading Smule, the social singing app. Smule’s powerful music platform offers singers the chance to enter the competition from any corner of the country. The easy-to-use singing app offers contestants a virtual recording studio, with a list of hit songs to choose from a specially curated Smule Mirchi Cover Star playlist, a pitch guide to help stay in tune, and a variety of audio and video effects to look and sound their best. Once they have recorded their favourite song, all they have do is fill in a few details and they have entered the contest.

“We’ve been blown away by the participation and high-caliber talent we’ve found through “Smule Mirchi Cover Star” over the last two seasons,” said Bill Bradford, President at Smule, Inc. “We’re proud to continue to invest in discovering local talent and empowering our musical community with the tools and inspiration they need to unleash their creativity, forge friendships with music lovers around the globe and connect through music in a way that’s truly meaningful.”

Smule is backed in India by Times Bridge, an investment arm of the Times Group.

Commenting on Association for the third season, Viral Jani, Senior Vice President Investment Operations, Times Bridge, “The Season 3 of The Smule Mirchi Cover Star will provide a unique opportunity to this growing community of users to directly engage with prominent music artists on the Smule app and a once in a lifetime opportunity for winners to perform on the biggest musical platform of the country. Our endeavour at Times Bridge is to co-create such platforms by bridging technology, communities and media distribution to build higher order consumer value.”  

The competition series offers a star-studded judging panel that includes: "Sufi Ki Sultana" Harsh Deep Kaur, versatile singer Kanika Kapoor, music sensation Neeti Mohan, and singer and music director duo, Meet Brothers. The judges bring expert experience and glamour to the competition, providing the season with the x-factor. The top five contestants will move to the next level, where they will perform live for the celebrity judges in an on-ground event in Mumbai. The judges will root and pick their favourite contestant, leading the nation in discovering its next singing sensation! 

Nandan Srinath, Executive President, Mirchi, says:  "We at Mirchi are all set to bring an all new season of Smule Mirchi Cover Star for those who love music and love to sing. Smule Mirchi Cover Star is a platform dedicated to those who love singing. The electric response we received in terms of entries in the previous seasons have been a big motivation in making Season 3 much bigger and better. This season will witness the grandeur of a bigger set of judges, bigger competition and bigger prizes. Partnering with Smule yet again this year makes participation easier and brings on board their vast community of music lovers. We are constantly excited with the strides Smule is making, and always enjoy working with them on Mirchi Cover Star. “