Singer season 1
| Company type | Television program season |
|---|---|
| Industry | Television |
| Founded | January 18, 2013 |
| Headquarters | China |
Area served | China |
| Parent | Hunan Television |
I Am a Singer () represents the Chinese version of the Korean reality program I Am a Singer, aired on Hunan Television. The inaugural season debuted on January 18, 2013, comprising 13 episodes segmented into five rounds, each containing two episodes, followed by a final stage of three episodes: Revival Round, Semifinals, and Finals. Every round featured seven vocalists performing in front of an audience of 500, who voted to decide which contestant would be eliminated. The opening episode of each round did not include eliminations; however, in subsequent episodes, the singer receiving the lowest votes was removed and succeeded by a new participant in the next episode.
The first season concluded with Chinese musical duo Yu Quan, consisting of Chen Yufan (陳羽凡) and Hu Haiquan (胡海泉), emerging as champions during the live finale aired on April 12, 2013.
Production
Spanning 13 weeks, the season began with five competitive rounds—each divided into Qualifier and Knockout episodes—followed by a Revival episode, then the Semi-finals and Grand Finals. Each episode showcased seven singers evaluated by a studio audience of 500 members who initially voted for their top three performers; from the Semi-finals onward, voting shifted to selecting only one favorite singer. Votes accumulated over two episodes determined which singer was eliminated after Knockouts. Those eliminated were replaced by new contestants, with vote tallies resetting at the start of each round.
Each performer was paired with a Music Partner who served as an advisor; both exited the competition upon the singer's elimination. Instead of appointing a fixed host, hosting responsibilities rotated among active singers; once a singer was eliminated, they also relinquished hosting duties.
Revival round
Initially designed as a 12-week competition without a Revival round, producer Hong Tao introduced this segment during Week 8, positioned between the fifth Knockout and Semi-finals. Conducted after the final Knockout in Week 11, five previously eliminated singers (excluding Chyi Chin due to withdrawal) competed for the seventh spot in the semi-finals. Each contestant performed two songs—a cover and an original composition—with cumulative votes deciding who would re-enter the contest.
In this season, only eliminated singers participated in the Revival round; remaining initial and substitute singers were exempt. From subsequent seasons onward, substitute singers also joined this phase but performed only one song due to time constraints and an expanded roster.
Finals
The Grand Finals were broadcast live on April 12, 2013, spanning four hours beginning at 7:30 pm. Contestants competed for the championship by delivering two performances: a duet with a guest artist and a solo piece. Votes cast after each performance were converted into scores that determined the winner. Notably, this finale included appearances from previously eliminated and withdrawn singers; later seasons restricted such performances to eliminated participants exclusively.
Contestants
Below is an alphabetical list of contestants from I Am a Singer season one. Finalists without specific rankings are indicated accordingly; withdrawals are noted where applicable.
Key:
- – Winner
- – Runner-up
- – Other finalist
- – Withdrew
| Contestant | Country | Manager | Status | Week Entered | Week Exited | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Template:Sort cell | China | Template:Sort cell | Initial singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell |
| Template:Sort cell | Taiwan | Template:Sort cell | Initial singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell |
| Template:Sort cell | Taiwan | Template:Sort cell | Substitute singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell |
| Template:Sort cell | China | Template:Sort cell | Initial singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell |
| Template:Sort cell | Taiwan | Template:Sort cell | Initial singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell |
| Template:Sort cell | Taiwan | Template:Sort cell | Substitute singer | Template:Sort cell | Template:Sort cell | Finalist (4th–7th place) |
| Template:Sort cell | China | YOYO | Initial singer | Week 1 (qualifying round 1) | Week 11 (Revival round) | Eliminated |
| Shang Wenjie | China | Wu Xin | Initial singer | Week 1 (qualifying round 1) | Week 8 (knockout round 3) Week 11 (Revival round) |
Eliminated |
| Paul Wong | Hong Kong | Wayne Zhang | Initial singer | Week 1 (qualifying round 1) | Week 2 (knockout round 1) Week 11 (Revival round) |
Eliminated |
| Aska Yang | Taiwan | Tian Yuan | Substitute singer | Week 3 (qualifying round 2) Week 11 (Revival round) |
Week 4 (knockout round 2) Week 13 (finals) |
Finalist (4th–7th place) |
| 'Yu Quan' | 'China' | 'Li Weijia' | 'Initial singer' | 'Week 1 (qualifying round 1)' | 'Week 13 (finals)' | 'Winner' |
| 'Zhou Xiao'ou' | 'China' | 'Shen Ling' | 'Substitute singer' | 'Week 5 (qualifying round 3)' | 'Week 13 (finals)' | 'Finalist (4th–7th place)' |
Future appearances
In the subsequent season's Biennial concert, guest performances were delivered by Yu Quan, Terry Lin, Aska Yang, Julia Peng, and Shang Wenjie. Yu Quan also appeared in the season premiere, while Huang Qishan made a return as a guest assistant singer during the finale. Both Huang and Yang participated again in the Biennial concert of the third season. Season four saw Zhou Xiao'ou come back as a guest assistant singer, accompanied by Yu Quan, Han Lei, and Han Hong in a special Winners exhibition performance. During season five's final episode, Lin and Peng rejoined as contestants, whereas Yang and Shang appeared as guest assistant singers.
Results
| First | Safe | Bottom | Eliminated | Return Performance | Repechage Success | Repechage Failure | Winner | Runner-up | Withdrew |
| Singer | Broadcast Date (2013) | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 Jan | 25 Jan | 1 Feb | 8 Feb | 15 Feb | 22 Feb | 1 Mar | 8 Mar | 15 Mar | 22 Mar | 29 Mar | 5 Apr | 12 Apr | ||||
| 1st Round | 2nd Round | 3rd Round | 4th Round | 5th Round | Repechage | Semifinal | Final Round | |||||||||
| Qualifying | Knockout | Qualifying | Knockout | Qualifying | Knockout | Qualifying | Knockout | Qualifying | Knockout | 1st Round | 2nd Round | Overall | ||||
| 1 | Yu Quan | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 2 | — | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| 2 | Terry Lin | — | — | — | — | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 3 | "—" | "2" | "2" | "1" | "2" |
Competition details
First round
Qualifying
- Recording Date: January 10, 2013
- Broadcast Date: January 18, 2013
| Performance Order | Singer | Comedian Manager | Song Title | Original Artist | Lyrics By | Composer | Arranger | Placement |
|---|
Knockout
- Recording Date: January 17, 2013
- Broadcast Date: January 25, 2013
| Performance Order | Singer | Comedian Manager | Song Title | Original Artist | Lyrics By | Composer | Arranger | Placement |
|---|
Overall ranking
1 || Yu Quan ||661 ||22.12% 2 || Chyi Chin ||492 ||16.46% 3 || Huang Qishan ||475 ||15.90% 4 || ||Sha Baoliang ||388 ||12.98% 5 || Shang Wenjie ||381 ||12.75% 6 || |Chen Ming ||301 ||10.07% 7 || |Paul Wong ||290 ||9.70%| Placement | Singer | Total Votes | Percentage of Total Votes |
|---|
Summary of subsequent rounds
As the contest advanced through qualifying and knockout stages, performers employed tactical song selections alongside support from guest managers to enhance their presentations. For example, Terry Lin opted for a last-minute song alteration to prevent repetition, while audience-driven choices influenced song selections in later stages. Withdrawals led to replacements introducing talents such as Aska Yang, Terry Lin, Zhou Xiao'ou, Winnie Hsin, and Julia Peng.
During the Revival round, eliminated participants vied for a chance to re-enter the competition, with Aska Yang securing reinstatement by achieving the highest combined vote tally.
The Semifinal stage featured a reduced voting weight per audience member but played a crucial role in shaping final outcomes.
The Grand Finals consisted of two segments—a duet with guest singers followed by solo encore performances—with cumulative voting determining the champion.
Grand finals
- Broadcast Date: April 12, 2013
Guest duets showcased collaborations with prominent artists including Wakin Chau, The One, Shunza, Deng Chao, Jam Hsiao, and James Li. The winners’ segment emphasized individual artistry through signature or tribute performances.
Champion : Yu Quan was crowned the inaugural winner of I Am a Singer, achieving an aggregate vote share of 25.78%, narrowly edging out Terry Lin who garnered a total of 22.59%.
1 || Yu Quan ||17.24% ||28.60% ||34.38% ||25.78% 2 || Terry Lin ||=17.44% ||=15.60% ||=36.47% ||=22.59%| Placement | Singer | Semifinal Vote Percentage (40%) | Grand Finals Round One Vote Percentage (30%) | Grand Finals Round Two Vote Percentage (30%) | Total Vote Percentage |
|---|
Ratings
|- |1 | | | |rowspan="13"|1 |- |2 | |1.714 |8.08 |- |3 | |2.014 |9.34 |- |4 | |2.067 |8.24 |- |5 | |1.963 |9.07 |- |6 | |2.022 |8.83 |- |7 | |2.381 |10.56 |- |8 | |2.368 |11.35 |- |9 | |2.336 |11.63 |- |10 | |2.480 |12.20 |- |11 | |2.206 |11.56 |- |12 | |2.430 |11.94 |- |13
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