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Building the Band, the Netflix series produced by Remarkable Entertainment, builds on previous reality shows, including The Voice and Love is Blind. Similar in concept to The Voice, whereby the celebrity judges depend on only the singer’s voice rather than appearance, it is watchable, interesting and also classy. The slight difference is that in the early stages, singers perform individually to other singers/singer-songwriters. A total of 50 singers audition to other singers while in visually appealing booths or pods. Every artiste is allowed a maximum of 10 likes to those they can visualize seeing him/her in a band together, according to their musical preferences and tastes. Every result is swiftly delivered by host AJ McLean, a member of the once-popular Backstreet Boys. Should the performer receive fewer than five likes, he or she will be sent home. Another possible scenario for a contestant to be sent home is that the contestant has had already formed a band with the others.

In between performances, contestants get to voice chat with those in pods about the band they envision. The concept of voice chats is pretty much like how communication is done via messaging apps. So, it’s very relevant to the generations who have experienced using these apps. From the premise, only six bands consisting of three to five members can be formed.

When the contestants do get to see their group/bandmates for the first time, here’s where you can discern how much chemistry there is between them. It is an opportunity for these contestants to correct their misconceptions about and also attempt to connect with them

For fans of One Direction and Liam Payne, this will come as a difficult yet moving watch. By the way, Liam Payne appears as a guest judge in the later parts of the show, alongside former Destiny’s Child member Kelly Rowland. Payne also appears together with Building the Band’s mentor, Nicole Scherzinger, the lead singer of the then Pussycat Dolls, who also helped to piece together One Direction, which would go on to be the biggest pop phenomenon, comparable to The Beatles.

Guest judges are roped in to make the show more appealing and authentic. Who better to ask for feedback from than the ones who have experienced what is it like to form a band?

The earlier episodes tend to get repetitive and draw you out – I had to fast forward, which isn’t what I usually do for a reality show.

Perhaps, the contestants could have been better filtered out.

Contestants get to see each other in person at some point in the show and then move on to working with Nicole Scherzinger as their mentor.

Like many reality TV shows, this also has its own form of drama for spectacle. Making stars is not as high of a priority anymore – even if the quality of some of the contestants and visuals have improved by leaps and bounds since the early-2000s.

Episodes have started streaming since 9 July 2025. New episodes are released every Wednesday, with the final batch set to be out on the 23rd of the same month.

Final performances of the show had been recorded in late-August 2024, marking Payne’s final television appearance work, before his passing in October 2024.