Stars Academy is a Hong Kong singing competition television series to find young singing talents. The second season, also known as Stars Academy 2, premiered on 11 June 2022 and concluded on 2 October 2022, spanning 15 episodes. The competition followed a similar structure to the previous season, with individual and group performances and eliminations based on scores. Eric Kwok and Hanjin Tan served as coaching supervisors, alongside a team of coaches consisting of Vincy Chan, JW, Eman Lam, Phil Lam, Gin Lee, and Alan Po. Jasmine Yam was announced as the winner on 2 October 2022. Throughout the competition, Yam gained notable popularity, securing the top position on the audience popularity list for nine weeks. A post-competition live concert titled Prom Night was held on 1 November 2022 featured performances by most contestants, with a special appearance by Eric Kwok.

Production

In July 2021, TVB initiated the audition process for the second season. Out of 1,000 applicants from both local and overseas, 23 contestants were selected, including 17 individuals and a 6-membered girl group. The members of the girl group, XiX, was initially introduced to the public through the youth talent singing show Stars Academy Juniors (2022). Investment of approximately 3,000 hours of training, including singing, dancing, nutrition, and make-up classes, was made, with a cost estimated at HKD $2 million per contestant. From April to June 2022, promotional activities for the show commenced, introducing the season's theme, "Surpass Myself". A music video and theme song with the same title were released. Its writing team included several contestants from the previous season–Aska Cheung, Archie Sin, Kaitlyn Lam, and Rock Ho–carrying the message of "passing the fire to the next generation".

The show retained Johnny Yim as the music director, and Sunny Wong served as the dance director. The set design was inspired by the Hong Kong Coliseum, featuring a 4-sided stage with motorised moving platforms and 5D hologram technology. The season premiered on 11 June, with the finale taking place on 2 October 2022. In addition to the Hong Kong region, TVB extended auditions and held smaller-scale singing competition shows in Malaysia and Australia. The winners from these shows eventually competed in Hong Kong against the winners from the domestic region in a friendly match. The match was featured in a two-special-episode spinoff programme titled Stars Academy 2 Kick-off Match, which concluded the Stars Academy 2 franchise in its entirety with its last airing date on 12 November 2022. The winner, Jasmine Yam, performed a live rendition of her tailor-made song "Breath Away", written by the season's coaching supervisors, Eric Kwok and Hanjin Tan, during this programme.

Format and competition overview

The second season of the competition maintained the same basic structure as the previous one, but with some modifications. Like before, the competition consisted of multiple rounds, and apart from the live finale, the majority of the show was pre-recorded. Each round was typically broadcast within one, two, or three episodes. A panel of 25 professional music judges was also assembled for each round. Eric Kwok and Hanjin Tan, previously judges in the first season, were invited to become coaching supervisors for the second season.

The season began with Episode 1, introducing the contestants to the audience. In Episode 2, the contestants performed in groups of three or four, with the coaches selecting and forming their individual teams. For any contestants who faced the possibility of elimination after not being chosen, a second chance was given to showcase their talent individually. In Episodes 3–5, the contestants were divided into three groups of six. Each coach sent one of their contestants to compete in each group. Following the performances, three contestants who received the lowest score in each group were eliminated.

The remaining fifteen contestants were divided into two teams and competed against each other in the subsequent three rounds (Episodes 6–12). Under the leadership of Eric Kwok, the groups formed by Vincy Chan, Phil Lam, and Gin Lee composed the Red team. Hanjin Tan led the groups consisting of JW, Eman Lam, and Alan Po, forming the Blue team. Competing for a total cumulative score, the coaches of the losing team would disqualify one or two contestants according to the guidelines established for each round. In Episodes 6–8, the teams engaged in individual head-to-head battles. In Episodes 9–10, a concert-mode battle format was adopted, where both teams presented five sets of performances resembling those seen at a typical concert, including opening acts and encores. In Episodes 11–12, each contestant performed in pairs, either with a coach or another contestant from the same or opposite team.

Episodes 13–14 marked the return to individual competition for the top ten contestants, as they competed one-on-one for placement in the top five. The season finale, held on 2 October 2022 in Episode 15, utilized a scoring system that weighed both the judges' scores and audience votes equally. After the top five finalists performed, Jasmine Yam and Janees Wong emerged as the top two and faced off in a final round. Jasmine Yam ultimately claimed the winning title, earning a prize of HKD $100,000. Janees Wong placed as runner-up, with a prize of HKD $50,000, while Sabrina Chiu became the second runner up and received a prize of HKD $30,000.

Contestants

Jasmine Yam Hoi-ching (age 16 on the show) gained attention for her emotional singing ability, shown in renditions including Leo Ku's "This Enjoyable Night" () and Jacky Cheung's "So Close Yet So Far" (). Although not viewed as the best technical contestant, Yam was noted for having "an exceptional () voice timbre and temperament" and considered promising for her age. Janees Wong Lok-yin (age 25 on the show) received praise for her technically skilled performance of Vincy Chan's "Gutters" (). Sabrina Chiu Chi-lok (age 13 on the show) was noted for her powerful vocals, particularly in her performance of JC's "Be Apart" (). XiX (girl group) earned the "Outstanding Performance" Award for placing in top five. Vici Chong Yan-yuet (age 14 on the show) Aster Lau Chi-kwan (age 14 on the show) Crystal Leung Sin-chi (age 15 on the show) Charlotte Mow Wan-hei (age 13 on the show) Kiele Tang Xiao-yin (age 15 on the show) Caitlin Yang Bing-yi (age 14 on the show) Pamela Chiu Siu-ting (age 21 on the show) earned the "Outstanding Performance" Award for placing in top five. Zayden Pang Ka-yin (age 25 on the show) Angel Lau Wing-tung (age 22 on the show) received the "Contestant with the Most Progress" Award along with Sean Wen. Maggie Chiu Chung-yee (age 19 on the show) Duncan How Chun-hei (age 26 on the show) Sean Wen Cho-hong (age 22 on the show) received the "Contestant with the Most Progress" Award along with Angel Lau. Jason Chan Chun-hin (age 27 on the show) Vivian Kong Ting-wai (age 26 on the show) Timothy Chan Ho-ting (age 21 on the show) Nicole Siu Ching-him (age 17 on the show) Christopher Kim Wing-hang (age 29 on the show) Mandy Suen Yee-man (age 20 on the show) Desta Lee Yan-tung (age 22 on the show) Crystal Leung Tsz-ching (age 17 on the show)

Episode performances

Color key:

Episode 1: Non-competition performances

Order Contestant(s) Song 1 Group "Bohemian Rhapsody 2 Vivian Kong "The Last Blossom" () 3 Jason Chan "I Love You" () 4 Angel Lau "Joyful" () 5 XiX "Hard Life" () 6 Pamela Chiu "I'm Really Hurt" () 7 Timothy Chan "Love Too Late" () 8 Sabrina Chiu "Traitor" 9 Sean Wen "Perfect" 10 Janees Wong "The Greatest Love of All" 11 Zayden Pang "Who Is That" () 12 Maggie Chiu "Breathing Is Hazardous" () 13 Duncan How "Wanderer" () 14 Christopher Kim "Golden Era" () 15 Jasmine Yam "One Plus One" () 16 Crystal Leung "Born Second Grade" () 17 Desta Lee "Elegant and Vulgar" () 18 Mandy Suen "Appointment" () 19 Nicole Siu "Over the Rainbow" 20 Group "My Happy Time" ()

Episode 2: Coaches' choices

Order Contestant(s) Song Coach's choices Vincy Chan J.W. Eman Lam Phil Lam Gin Lee Alan Po 1 Duncan How "Love Is Doubt"() — — — — — Timothy Chan — — — — — Jason Chan — — — — — 2 Crystal Leung"Unfortunately My Star Sign Is Aquarius"() — — — — — Pamela Chiu — — — — — Vivian Kong — — — — — 3 Christopher Kim "Viva Alive"() — — — — — Maggie Chiu — — — — — — Zayden Pang — — — — — Sean Wen — — — — — 4 Angel Lau "So You Actually Don't Want Anything At All"() — — — — — — Desta Lee — — — — — Janees Wong — — — — — Mandy Suen — — — — — 5 Sabrina Chiu "Poker Face" — — — — — Nicole Siu — — — — — Jasmine Yam — — — — — XiX — — — — —2nd chance Angel Lau "Pretty Crazy" — — — — — Maggie Chiu "Season of the Wind" () — — — — —

Episodes 3–5

Order Contestant Coach Song Score Result 1 Pamela Chiu J.W. "The Root of Love" () 17Advanced 2 Jasmine Yam Gin Lee "Jade Butterfly" () 19Advanced 3 Christopher Kim Eman Lam "Morning Train" () 16Advanced 4 Angel Lau Alan Po "Shinning" () 13Advanced 5 Sabrina Chiu Phil Lam "Be Apart" () 23Advanced 6 Crystal Leung Vincy Chan "I Wish" 8Eliminated 7 Sean Wen Vincy Chan "Why You Gonna Lie" 19Advanced 8 Zayden Pang Phil Lam "Love and Sincerity" () 23Advanced 9 Desta Lee Alan Po "Overpowered" () 8Eliminated 10 Nicole Siu Eman Lam "You Raise Me Up" 14Advanced 11 Vivian Kong Gin Lee "Dangerous Woman" 22Advanced 12 Timothy Chan J.W. "Lies Between Us" () 16Advanced 13 Duncan How Alan Po "Endlessly" () 17Advanced 14 XiX Vincy Chan Me Gusta Tu 23Advanced 15 Mandy Suen Gin Lee "Tears" () 14Eliminated 16 Maggie Chiu Eman Lam "You Are the Only One in My Heart" () 22Advanced 17 Jason Chan Phil Lam "Pillow Talk" () 21Advanced 18 Janees Wong J.W. "Leave the Keys Behind" () 23Advanced

Episodes 6–8: First team battles

+ Order Contestant Song Score 1 Vivian Kong "Crescent Bay" () 9 Pamela Chiu "Soul Recognition" () 162 Jasmine Yam "3 A.M." 9 Angel Lau "Let It Be Gone With the Wind" () 163 Duncan How "Trust Yourself" () 5 XiX "Superpower" () 204 Maggie Chiu "Hard To Love" () 17 Jason Chan "Red Scarf" () 85 Sabrina Chiu "Hostage" () 8 Timothy Chan "Rubbish" () 176 Nicole Siu "Encountered" () 4 Sean Wen "Ice Ice Baby" 217 Christopher Kim "Toxic" 7 XiX "If I Ain't Got You" 188 Janees Wong "Lady Marmalade" 9 Zayden Pang "Always Stay Young" () 16

+Team formation and resultRed teamBlue team Jason ChanAdvanced Timothy ChanAdvanced Sabrina ChiuAdvanced Maggie ChiuAdvanced Vivian KongAdvanced Pamela ChiuAdvanced Zayden PangAdvanced Duncan HowAdvanced Sean WenAdvanced Christopher KimEliminated XiXAdvanced Angel LauAdvanced Jasmine YamAdvanced Nicole SiuAdvanced Janees WongAdvanced

Episodes 9–10: Second team battles (concert-mode)

+ Order Contestant(s) Song(s) Score Opening Jason Chan, Sabrina Chiu, Zayden Pang, Sean Wen, XiX "Why Do We Dream" () "Uptown Funk" 15 Maggie Chiu, Pamela Chiu, Angel Lau, Janees Wong "Exaggerated" () 10Song of the Year Janees Wong "Words of Love Still Unspoken" () 9 Jasmine Yam "This Enjoyable Night" () 16Power Medley Jason Chan, Vivian Kong, Sean Wen, XiX, Jasmine Yam "In the Lasers" () "Dynamite" "Flow Not Fly" () 16 Timothy Chan, Duncan How, Angel Lau, Nicole Siu "Stop Fooling Around" () "Bad Girl" () "Trouble Maker" 9Duet with a Guest Star Maggie Chiu, Kaitlyn Lam "Black Tangerine" () 16 Sabrina Chiu, Yumi Chung "Dancing Diva" () 9Encore All Red Team contestants "We Will Rock You""We Are the Champions" 8 All Blue Team contestants "A Million Dreams" "Youth Anthem" () 17

+Team formation and resultRed teamBlue team Jason ChanAdvanced Timothy ChanEliminated Sabrina ChiuAdvanced Maggie ChiuAdvanced Vivian KongAdvanced Pamela ChiuAdvanced Zayden PangAdvanced Duncan HowAdvanced Sean WenAdvanced Angel LauAdvanced XiXAdvanced Nicole SiuEliminated Jasmine YamAdvanced Janees WongAdvanced

Episodes 11–12: Third team battles