“Victory Operation” stands alone at the top as the most watched reality talent series on TV. On Monday, July 3, around 2,000 hopefuls gathered at Fira de Barcelona’s Montjuïc venue to audition for the next edition of the program led by Amazon Prime Video. The audition team moved some contestants forward, and by the end of the day a total of 132 performers had earned a spot in the next round in the Catalan capital. This marks a shift for the Gestmusic format, as it transitions to streaming and introduces live content for the first time on the platform.
The day began at ten in the morning, with a long queue already circling the enclosure. Early birds arrived between five and six, and one entrant had camped out since Friday in anticipation of the first open call. Yet fortune did not favor this hopeful, who could not advance to the subsequent stage.
All candidates sang one song a cappella, with fifty songs listed by Prime Video for the auditions. For the first time, there were restrictions on the song topics, driven by the need to secure artistic rights and licenses for later publication of the auditions on the platform. Among the crowd’s favorites were songs such as “Baby One More Time” by Britney Spears, “Flowers” by Miley Cyrus, “Someone You Loved” by Lewis Capaldi, and “You Can Count On Me” by La Oreja de Van Gogh.
first chosen
Isaac Pacheco, 25, became the first finalist selected by Noemí Galera in this opening round. The young man earned a pass that grants him a Prime OTA badge, allowing him to skip the casting queue for future rounds. This badge is awarded to contestants who post their song videos on Instagram or TikTok during these weeks, drawing the attention of the judges.
Pacheco advanced by performing Britney Spears’ “Baby One More Time” and Lady Gaga’s “Bad Romance.” “I still can’t believe it; I was shaking,” he said after taking the first step. Mario He traveled from Valencia and earned his long-awaited badge this year after auditioning for the show in 2018. He sang “Este tren” by Rozalén, “Don’t Go Yet” by Camila Cabello, and “I’m Going to Invent a Path” by El Jose.
One hundred thirty-two performers advancing to the next stage must prepare three songs from the same chosen repertoire and will face the next challenge tomorrow. For the first song, musician Pablo Lluch will provide live accompaniment, while the remaining pieces may be performed with instruments that do not require amplification or without accompaniment. The final test is scheduled to take place in Barcelona a few months from now, with eighteen contestants entering the academy.
Amazon Prime Video will feature the new version of “OT” with live premieres of approximately ninety minutes, hosted by Chenoa. This marks Prime Video’s first weekly live content, followed by a daily program discussing the academy’s happenings. The series plans to share much of the contestants’ lives on YouTube, even as the main show shifts to the streaming platform and expands its reach to about thirty countries around the world.