On August 13th, “Singer 2025” received a low rating of 3.8 on Douban, marking the lowest rating since the first season of “Singer” aired ten seasons ago. The news quickly became a hot topic on Weibo.
According to Douban, there were 30,416 people rating this season of the program, with 51.7% giving it 1 star, 20.4% giving it 2 stars, and only 2.3% giving it a 5-star positive review.
Looking back at the Singer series, the first season “I Am a Singer Season One” aired in 2013. Douban introduces the show as China’s first singer music duel television program, featuring well-known figures in the music industry such as Qi Qin, Yu Quan, Huang Qishan, Huang Guanzhong, Chen Ming, Shang Wenjie, and Lin Zhixuan. It once gained tremendous popularity, with a final Douban rating of 8.1 from 28,430 participants.
The second and third seasons maintained a high level of performance with Douban ratings not below 7.5, and showcased talented singers like Dang Ziqi and Huang Liling, solidifying its position as Mango TV’s flagship variety show. However, industry insiders now comment: “This ace has turned itself into a joke.”
“2025 Singer” has concluded with a viewership rating of only 0.7% and a Douban rating of 3.8, marking the lowest score in the history of the program.
Claiming to be live broadcasting, unedited, with open singing throughout, “Singer 2025” was won by mainland Chinese male singer Chen Chusheng. Interestingly, over ten minutes before the results were announced, the ranking list leaked online. A photo showing a list of names with Chen Chusheng as the first, American country singer Mickey Guyton as the second, Dan Yi Jun as the third, and A-Lin as the last matched the final result exactly.
The revelation of a mysterious note ignited a storm on the internet, with many questioning the fairness of the competition and suspecting that the champion was predetermined. Sharp-eyed netizens noticed that Chen Chusheng remained calm when announced as the winner, showing little surprise.
Following the exposure of the mysterious note, the official Weibo comments section of Hunan Satellite TV was flooded with angry messages from netizens. Although “informed sources” claimed it was just a “routine work reminder” for the staff, the production team has not made a formal response.
“2025 Singer” has been highly controversial since its premiere, continuously sparking debates. Fans criticized, “Although this season received numerous negative reviews, it maintained high levels of popularity throughout, Mango TV has always excelled in variety show effects, from start to finish, despite the critical reception.”
Netizens criticized, “Why can’t foreigners win even if they sing better?” Despite over 9,000 people giving Mickey Guyton a perfect score in a poll launched by renowned music critic Orange Teacher online and the enthusiastic response from the audience, Mickey ultimately finished as the runner-up.
Many netizens expressed that the program’s rankings are completely unconvincing. An infuriated mainland Chinese fan wrote, “From the second round when Lin Zhixuan was eliminated, many viewers have been calling it a ‘script’. We thought that the final would be more fair, but unexpectedly, in the grand final, instead of the highly demanded Mickey, the Song King title was awarded to Chen Chusheng. Is it because Mickey is a foreign singer and Chen Chusheng is a ‘local’?” “As a competitive program, ‘Singer 2025’ has lost even the most basic fairness. It should no longer be held.”