We have a winner

A few weeks ago, the only people who had heard of Olarick Khunsit belonged to his family, friends and colleagues. Today, his name is on the lips of Channel 3 viewers as the man who swept the Bt10 million top prize in the debut season of singing game show “The Winner Is Thailand”, knocking the favourites, sibling duo Two Tone, off their perch.

“Now I believe I can fly,” says the 27-year-old with a proud grin. “I picked R Kelly’s ‘I Believe I Can Fly’ for the final round because I wanted the judges and the viewers to know how I felt at that particular moment. I think that’s probably why I won.”

His victory was so sweeping that Two Tone, who landed 99 out of the possible 101 votes in the third week, saw themselves drop to 49 to Olarick’s 52 and decided to press the button and return home with the Bt1 million consolation prize.

The show, which originated in the Netherlands, pairs contestants against each other with each performing a song of their choice. After each of the contestants or groups has performed, the 101 expert voters decide who did better. The voting numbers are then revealed, but the contestants are not told which number is theirs. At this stage, they are presented with an offer of money and if they think they have lost the battle, they can press the button and go home a little richer. Unlike other singing contests, “The Winner Is” is not about fame or a recording contract but about turning one’s singing abilities into cash. Other versions have aired in China, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Nigeria, Vietnam and the Arab world. A US version performed poorly and has been cancelled.

Olarick, whose name means gigantic, hails from the seaside resort of Hua Hin and like his dad, a former banker, and the rest of his family, is a devout Buddhist. 

“My brother, sister and I look very different but we share a love of music and singing,” says the young marketing executive.

During their childhood, Olarick and his siblings would often spend evenings with their parents at a karaoke club and as he grew up was frequently invited to show off his vocal talents at weddings and school events.

 “My father wanted us to be confident about expressing ourselves freely while on stage and also encouraged us to take English lessons so we could understand what we were singing. I wasn’t able to take singing classes though, as we had to tighten our belts when the economy went south. But I used to practice on my own and whenever I was offered an opportunity to sing in front of an audience, I grabbed it,” Olarick says.

“Singing has always helped me to relax when I am stressed and has also drawn my family closer together.”

In 2010, Olarick auditioned for the KPN Award contest, seaoson six of “The Star” and “The Voice Thailand” by singing Brian McKnight’s “Back at One”, one of his favourite R&B singles, but failed to make the grade.

“I felt very discouraged. Then while I was working for my master’s degree at Chulalongkorn University, I took part in a CU singing contest and made it through to the last 10. That was a turning point and, more importantly, it gave me hope. I also attended Khru Jay Veerayano’s workshop at Grammy and learned some singing techniques. She was the one who suggested I take part in ‘The Winner Is’.”

Olarick progressed through the preliminary rounds, competing against the winners of the previous eight weeks and coming second in the vote count, losing out to Nichanan “Oe” Chotiamornpan by 45 to 56. Nichanan however selected to press the button and return home with Bt100,000, which pushed Olarick into the winning slot of the second week.

“She could really sing and like everyone else, I was impressed with her powerful vocals on Whitney Houston’s ‘I Have Nothing’. I really thought she would win but I didn’t press the button. I wasn’t so interested in the money as I have a good job but I really wanted the chance to sing on TV. So much depends on luck,” he says.

Looking back, Olarick says he was most worried about actress Nibhada Sukhakrit, one of the panel, as well as rivals Two Tone, both of whom have a great deal of singing experience. 

“Nibhada was one of commentators in the KPN Award and I remember her telling me that I should open my mouth wider while singing so that I could get achieve more vocal power without expending so much effort. She was right too but I didn’t get the impression I was getting through, especially in the fifth week when I performed ‘You’re So Beautiful’ for my mother. I felt she was diffident about the rhythm, which had a faster arrangement than the original.”

Olarick is ensure what the future holds in terms of a singing career but he already has a good idea of how he will spend his cash.

 “First of all, I will be making merit at the temple,” he says. “After that, I will take singing lessons and also build a studio that my brother and I can run. Perhaps in the future, it can also serve as a kind of music school.”