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All is set for the first edition of the MTN Hit Maker reality show as judges slash a staggering 1,700 entries to just 12. The maiden edition, which was aired last Sunday on Multi TV�s Hitz TV, saw the judges completing the arduous task of listening to the numerous demos sent from across the country. Throughout the audition week, producer/keyboardist Bessa Simmons; engineer/producer Zapp Mallet and singer/composer Ofie, locked themselves up in the offices of Farmhouse Productions, producers of the show, to carefully give every entrant a fair hearing. According to Bessa Simons, �It was a slow, tedious process but we had to listen to everything.� Simons confessed that, �Some of them were nothing to write home about because they didn�t meet even the basic standard we are searching for. Others also were enthralling right from the beginning.� The 12 finalists will begin the 13-week residential camping to be coached, groomed and transformed into stars. Ghana has over the years witnessed the proliferation of music reality shows with the sole aim of identifying and nurturing young talents to become seasoned musicians. But MTN, as part of its social responsibility, has taken the opportunity to hunt young and talented musicians who have composed their own songs with their demos to support and transform them into international stars. The budding stars would square off with each other in front of judges of the competition � Bessa Simons, Ofie Kodjoe, a seasoned singer, and Zapp Mallet � while performing a number of genres from gospel, highlife, reggae, hiplife to hip hop. Catch the weekly shows on Sunday at 8pm on Hitz TV.