Stars Academy season 2

In July 2021, TVB initiated the audition process for the second season. Out of 1,000 applicants from both local and overseas, 23 contestants were selected, including 17 individuals and a 6-membered girl group.^[1] The members of the girl group, XiX, was initially introduced to the public through the youth talent singing show Stars Academy Juniors (2022).^[2] Investment of approximately 3,000 hours of training, including singing, dancing, nutrition, and make-up classes, was made, with a cost estimated at HKD $2 million per contestant.^[3][4] From April to June 2022, promotional activities for the show commenced, introducing the season's theme, "Surpass Myself". A music video and theme song with the same title were released. Its writing team included several contestants from the previous season–Aska Cheung, Archie Sin, Kaitlyn Lam, and Rock Ho–carrying the message of "passing the fire to the next generation".^[5]

The show retained Johnny Yim as the music director,^[6] and Sunny Wong served as the dance director.^[7] The set design was inspired by the Hong Kong Coliseum, featuring a 4-sided stage with motorised moving platforms and 5D hologram technology.^[3] The season premiered on 11 June, with the finale taking place on 2 October 2022.^[8][9] In addition to the Hong Kong region, TVB extended auditions and held smaller-scale singing competition shows in Malaysia and Australia. The winners from these shows eventually competed in Hong Kong against the winners from the domestic region in a friendly match. The match was featured in a two-special-episode spinoff programme titled Stars Academy 2 Kick-off Match, which concluded the Stars Academy 2 franchise in its entirety with its last airing date on 12 November 2022.^[10] The winner, Jasmine Yam, performed a live rendition of her tailor-made song "Breath Away", written by the season's coaching supervisors, Eric Kwok and Hanjin Tan, during this programme.^{[note 1]}

Coaches of Stars Academy 2^[12]

L–R, top: Eric Kwok (coaching supervisor), Vincy Chan, Phil Lam, Gin Lee
L–R, bottom: Hanjin Tan (coaching supervisor), JW, Eman Lam, Alan Po

The second season of the competition maintained the same basic structure as the previous one, but with some modifications. Like before, the competition consisted of multiple rounds, and apart from the live finale, the majority of the show was pre-recorded. Each round was typically broadcast within one, two, or three episodes. A panel of 25 professional music judges was also assembled for each round. Eric Kwok and Hanjin Tan, previously judges in the first season, were invited to become coaching supervisors for the second season.

The season began with Episode 1, introducing the contestants to the audience.^[8] In Episode 2, the contestants performed in groups of three or four, with the coaches selecting and forming their individual teams. For any contestants who faced the possibility of elimination after not being chosen, a second chance was given to showcase their talent individually.^[13] In Episodes 3–5, the contestants were divided into three groups of six. Each coach sent one of their contestants to compete in each group. Following the performances, three contestants who received the lowest score in each group were eliminated.^[14][15][16]

The remaining fifteen contestants were divided into two teams and competed against each other in the subsequent three rounds (Episodes 6–12). Under the leadership of Eric Kwok, the groups formed by Vincy Chan, Phil Lam, and Gin Lee composed the Red team. Hanjin Tan led the groups consisting of JW, Eman Lam, and Alan Po, forming the Blue team. Competing for a total cumulative score, the coaches of the losing team would disqualify one or two contestants according to the guidelines established for each round. In Episodes 6–8, the teams engaged in individual head-to-head battles.^[17] In Episodes 9–10, a concert-mode battle format was adopted, where both teams presented five sets of performances resembling those seen at a typical concert, including opening acts and encores.^[18] In Episodes 11–12, each contestant performed in pairs, either with a coach or another contestant from the same or opposite team.^[19]

Episodes 13–14 marked the return to individual competition for the top ten contestants, as they competed one-on-one for placement in the top five.^[20][21] The season finale, held on 2 October 2022 in Episode 15, utilized a scoring system that weighed both the judges' scores and audience votes equally. After the top five finalists performed, Jasmine Yam and Janees Wong emerged as the top two and faced off in a final round. Jasmine Yam ultimately claimed the winning title, earning a prize of HKD $100,000. Janees Wong placed as runner-up, with a prize of HKD $50,000, while Sabrina Chiu became the second runner up and received a prize of HKD $30,000.^[9][11]

• Jasmine Yam Hoi-ching^[A] (age 16 on the show)^[22] gained attention for her emotional singing ability, shown in renditions including Leo Ku's "This Enjoyable Night" (歡樂今宵) and Jacky Cheung's "So Close Yet So Far" (這麼近那麼遠).^[23][24] Although not viewed as the best technical contestant, Yam was noted for having "an exceptional (脫俗) voice timbre and temperament" and considered promising for her age.^{[note 2]}
• Janees Wong Lok-yin^[B] (age 25 on the show)^[22] received praise for her technically skilled performance of Vincy Chan's "Gutters" (溝渠暢泳).^[26]
• Sabrina Chiu Chi-lok^[C] (age 13 on the show)^[22] was noted for her powerful vocals, particularly in her performance of JC's "Be Apart" (說散就散).^[14]
• XiX (girl group)^[22] earned the "Outstanding Performance" Award for placing in top five.^[27]
  • Vici Chong Yan-yuet^[D] (age 14 on the show)
  • Aster Lau Chi-kwan^[E] (age 14 on the show)
  • Crystal Leung Sin-chi^[F] (age 15 on the show)
  • Charlotte Mow Wan-hei^[G] (age 13 on the show)
  • Kiele Tang Xiao-yin^[H] (age 15 on the show)
  • Caitlin Yang Bing-yi^[I] (age 14 on the show)
• Pamela Chiu Siu-ting^[J] (age 21 on the show)^[22] earned the "Outstanding Performance" Award for placing in top five.^[27]
• Zayden Pang Ka-yin^[K] (age 25 on the show)^[22]
• Angel Lau Wing-tung^[L] (age 22 on the show)^[22] received the "Contestant with the Most Progress" Award along with Sean Wen.^[27]
• Maggie Chiu Chung-yee^[M] (age 19 on the show)^[22]
• Duncan How Chun-hei^[N] (age 26 on the show)^[22]
• Sean Wen Cho-hong^[O] (age 22 on the show)^[22] received the "Contestant with the Most Progress" Award along with Angel Lau.^[27]
• Jason Chan Chun-hin^[P] (age 27 on the show)^[22]
• Vivian Kong Ting-wai^[Q] (age 26 on the show)^[22]
• Timothy Chan Ho-ting^[R] (age 21 on the show)^[22]
• Nicole Siu Ching-him^[S] (age 17 on the show)^[22]
• Christopher Kim Wing-hang^[T] (age 29 on the show)^[22]
• Mandy Suen Yee-man^[U] (age 20 on the show)^[22]
• Desta Lee Yan-tung^[V] (age 22 on the show)^[22]
• Crystal Leung Tsz-ching^[W] (age 17 on the show)^[22]

* Song titles are loosely translated into English for better readability. Official Chinese song titles are indicated in parentheses.

Color key:

Episode 1: Non-competition performances

Episode 2: Coaches' choices

Episodes 3–5

Episodes 6–8: First team battles

Episodes 9–10: Second team battles (concert-mode)

Episodes 11–12: Third team battles

Episodes 13–14: Top Five placement

Episode 15: Finale

Color key:

Besides the final audience vote, which contributed directly to the finale score, the show also kept track of viewers' favorites through a weekly online popularity list. Throughout the season, Jasmine Yam dominated the list, securing the top spot for nine consecutive weeks and solidifying her status as one of the most popular contestants.^[28] Among the most viewed on YouTube, Sabrina Chiu's performances took the lead, with Jasmine Yam closely following in second place.^[29] Notably, Yam's rendition of Sandy Lam's "Crazy" (瘋了), performed during the finale, stood out as the only performance to trend at the number one spot on YouTube's local Hot Trending list.^[30] The finale reached its peak viewership with 1.16 million viewers.^[31]

Prom Night was a live concert showcasing all the contestants, with the exception of Maggie Chiu and Nicole Siu, who were absent due to their personal reasons. The event took place on 1 November 2022, at MacPherson Stadium. The setlist primarily consisted of songs previously performed by the contestants during the singing competition. As a special addition, Eric Kwok made a guest appearance as a performer.^[41]

In May 2023, Aster Lau left the girl group XiX to pursue a solo career under All About Music.^[42] The remaining five members of XiX signed a record deal with Universal Music Hong Kong and made their official debut in September 2023.^[43]

• Group – "Surpass Myself" (我超越我, 2022) – Stars Academy 2 theme song^[44]
• Group – "Hat Trick" (2022) – featuring the first season contestants^[45]
• Group – "Stars of Joy" (2022)^[46]

• Official website