In spite of having a huge talent pool at the auditions for the Digicel Rising Stars competition in Island Village, Ocho Rios, on Saturday, the majority of the contestants lost points for their song selections.

The surprisingly lenient judges, which included guest judge Cherine Anderson, even permitted several promising contestants to change their song mid-audition, but were still unimpressed by the types of songs chosen by a number of contestants.

"The Etana and John Legend songs that we hear over and over and over are wearing our patience thin," said Anthony 'Killer' Miller, the longest-running judge on the show. "Choose something else. Go to the '60s, '50s, surprise us."

Similarly, judge Conroy Wilson shared, "When you come to the audition, act as if you really want to be here, like you know you coming to audition to win a million dollars, and choose the songs that fit your voice and show us in the very shortest time what you can do."

Disappointed about not making the cut, 17-year-old Thyann Alexander noted, "I know I didn't do my best, although I really worked really hard to prepare for this. But I think it was a combination of things why I didn't make it. I was nervous, I chose the wrong song, I've never sang in front of a crowd before, and I just wasn't ready for this."

The auditions saw a wide variety of talents emerging, from dancers to saxophonists, guitarists and comedians.

The auditions' next stop is at Tolans Esso in May Pen, Clarendon, on Sunday 31, followed by Manchester High School in Mandeville on June 7, Portmore Heart Academy in St Catherine on June 13, and the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre in St Andrew on June 21.