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Mel B, Benji Madden join The Voice Kids.

Mel B returns to Australian television, along with a second Madden brother.

2014-02-01_1049Nine has announced Mel B and Benji Madden as coaches on The Voice Kids Australia.

They join Delta Goodrem and Joel Madden in the spin-off series showcasing 8-14 year old singers.

The announcement comes despite the former Spice Girl costing Nine a packet in legal fees after initially casting her in Australia’s Got Talent but losing in a court case with Seven.

It also sees two Good Charlotte brothers sharing a big red chairs as Team Madden.

Mel B, who also appears on America’s Got Talent and 2DAYFM, said, “I’m so excited to be going back to my second home and returning to Australian television this year. I will be joining a great lineup of Coaches on The Voice Kids. It’s going to be so much fun, and I can’t wait to get started.”

“I’m really glad to be back in Australia. I’m always happy to work with my brother and especially to be a part of The Voice Kids. I always jump at the chance to mentor kids when it comes to music. This is gonna be a lot of fun,” Benji Madden added.

Adrian Swift, Nine Network’s Director of Development, said: “The Voice Kids is a whole new opportunity to share the extraordinary talent of young people in this country. We are very excited to have a panel of Coaches of this international standard to nurture these young artists through the show.

“Delta is one of the best individual voices Australia has produced. With the Spice Girls and as a solo artist Mel has sold over 80 million records. Benji and Joel have gone from chart-topping hit makers to become a formidable writing and producing team. If you’re a young Australian voice with a dream of finding an audience, we have the best stage in town.”

Due to air later this year, the Shine Australia series will again be hosted by Darren McMullen, with singer Prinnie Stevens joining as a backstage presenter.

24 Responses

  1. Team Madden would work considering there has been 2 people sharing one buzzer in the original production on the very first version of the Voice ever produced (Netherlands).

    I don’t think Mel B is the right choice, simply because she is not relavant to the generation of kids coming through today. Spice Girls are mid-late 90s, not 2000 onwards.

  2. @Danny

    You haven’t made any untoward comments, pretty much everything you’ve said is accurate. Nine is the champion of wash, rinse, repeat television and will always be number 2 as a result. The Voice Kids is a fairly desperate attempt to cash in on a strong brand of theirs whilst exploiting pre-pubescent children. Do we really want or need the next Justin Bieber?

  3. In all fairness and equality David, I was expecting to be eaten alive for the comments I posted. Thank you for allowing me to be candid because I know you have to make tough choices.

    The Big Bang Theory repeats are a separate issue for sure.

    I should have explained myself better. When I said “I’m all for the creation of jobs in an industry laden with supply but lacking in demand”, I wasn’t referring to the overall quality of content being created and put to air. Quite simply, I was referring to the fact that the business is so hard to break into and even tougher to rely on it as a steady source of regular income. While I may not understand the many choices being made by the big bosses, I applaud anyone that gives it a go.

    I hope there are no hard feelings.

  4. Ok, let’s look at this objectively: For: it can piggy back of the success of the voice brand, Australia loves Joel madden, against: saturated market, delta goodrem, voice fatigue, and the perception that it is ‘just another talent show’. When will it air? The normal voice fills up the first half of the year and the second half is X factor – put it up against this and it will get annihilated

  5. @ michaelOz, my gripe isn’t for the rationale that it’s a Nine program. Nine seems to reward their successful shows through overkill. Case in point: “The Block” airing 6 nights a week, not helped that it’s repeated again later on in the year. Now they’re doing it to “The Voice”. How many repeats of The Big Bang Theory have gone to syndication? They should be exhausting all their energies trying new things in small doses, rather than multiple seasons and barefaced plagiarism.

    I also want to make it clear I always support local content whenever and wherever possible since Australia has some great storytellers. I’m all for the creation of jobs in an industry laden with supply but lacking in demand.

    1. But Danny Big Bang repeats are really a separate issue. I agree saturation -be it of US sitcoms or reality offshoots- is of concern. But rather than hoping a show fails, it’s probably sufficient to just move on and focus on something else more to your liking. Market will decide if it lives or dies. Demand for local content is also very high.

  6. Geez, Danny.
    Wishing failure on a locally made production, amongst others, prompting job losses etc, just because a certain Network isn’t your favourite, is a bit harsh.

  7. @ buggirob, I’ll be more than happy to munch through a sizable helping of humble pie in the event my prophecy is erroneous.

    @ Beckala, it’s OK. You’ve got to love the classic Freudian slip.

  8. Hopefully Mel b’s appointment signals a change in philosophy for the format and the little brats will get a dose of honest nasty criticism instead of the OTT saccharine compliments everyone got in the first 2 seasons.

  9. @ Beckala, Lol!

    Don’t you mean Benji Madden, not Benji Marshall? One is a first grade NRL player, the other is a musician (can’t believe I just said that).

  10. Laughter truly is the best medicine and I was in acceptance of it while reading this editorial.
    Mel B proved her worth as the weakest link while judge on The X Factor: Australia in 2011 and 2012. I was in a situation of exhilaration when she “left” the show.

    She will certainly reproduce her cold personality. If this piece of s–t succeeds and is given a second season, everything old is new again Nine will instil Mel C as mentor just to give this “show” some credence.

    I personally hope this will be one of the biggest failures on television, and certainly one of many for Nine.

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