Speaking of judges, here’s something else that caught my attention. I have very little knowledge about music other than what I read about it, and the general music knowledge I still remember from learning how to play two different instruments at a young age. I don’t pretend I know anything about music or that I am an expert on it.
However, I have been a practitioner in the cultural industries for more than twenty years now, and today, I can call myself a professional since my income depends on the sale of my cultural products (books). I don’t have a salary and I don’t work a job “to get by”.
So, it was surprising for me to see, when I was in Malta last week, that half of the panel of judges of X Factor are not music professionals – but something else altogether. And it’s a testament to the dilettantism and amateurism with which the culture industries are practiced in Malta.
The judge on the far left is Gianluca Bezzina: a full-time doctor at Mater Dei who once, represented Malta at the Eurovision. The person next to him is Amber Bondin, a teacher who even failed to contest the Eurovision on Malta’s behalf. Then there is Ira Losoco, who although a creative professional, makes much of her income modeling and featuring in adverts or government propaganda. Then there is Howard Keith Debono who is the only professional that exclusively works in the music industry. I am told that contestants are aware of these issues, and in fact, they mostly opt to choose Howard Keith as their mentor, followed by Ira Losco.
Now, before the illiterate trolls start complaining about this “?dura”, of course, I have nothing personal against Gianluca Bezzina and Amber Bondin and I wish them all success in whatever they are doing – but it is obvious that they have no authority whatsoever to judge young Maltese artists on their skills and their competences if they themselves are failed artists.
Malta’s culture industries are plagued with dilettantism which is rewarded with government grants and state support. I also suppose that the judges on X Factor Malta were chosen based on their popularity and not their competence which makes the competition, in terms of music and art, quite redundant.
Coming to think of it I would not be surprised to see Gianluca Bezzina on the PN ballot list or Amber Bondin contesting with Labour. We have had many artists who eventually used their popularity to join politics, so those who selected them as judges may have also had intentions other than using them simply for a singing and music competition.
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