RTL Helps Children Throughout The World With Children''''s Charity CD

RTL has a great offer for children up to the age of 12 who like to sing: the Cologne TV station is inviting young amateur singers on its homepage and through small advertising spots on TV to apply to the first children's charity CD for the big RTL Telethon by sending a video with a sample of their singing talent. The best submissions will be rewarded with an invitation to the sound studio, where the winners will record a song for the charity CD together with stars such as Jess, who formerly belonged to the band No Angels, Kate Hall, the Super RTL discovery Banaroo, "Germany Seeks Its Superstar" winner Alexander Klaws, and "Lollypop," one of the most famous children's acts in Germany, among others. Proceeds from the sale of the CD will benefit this year's RTL Telethon, which will take place on November 24 and 25, 2005. 

RTL wants to collect "not only for children, but with children as well," said Dirk Müller, Managing Editor of the RTL news magazines "Punkt Sechs," "Punkt Neun," and "Punkt Zwölf". The idea for the children's charity CD came up in a meeting with his editorial team. "We are enabling children to help their peers in various parts of the world while at the same time fulfilling one of their own dreams – recording a song with a favorite star," the TV editor explained. 

Applications for the CD project have been accepted since last week. "We are now giving the children some time," said Müller, who is aware of the complicated procedure. For their singing sample, children can first select from among seven different lyrics that deal with those who will benefit from the telethon: for example, children suffering from famine in Africa, children in an orphanage, children in Peru, or the tsunami victims in Sri Lanka. They can practice the song, download the karaoke version, and record their performance on video. Then they can send their video to RTL Television. "We haven't defined a submission deadline yet, but it will probably be mid-October," Müller said. 

RTL will accompany the application period, the selection of the winners by an as yet unnamed celebrity jury, the recordings in the sound studio, and further campaigns surrounding the charity CD with articles in its news magazines "Punkt Sechs," "Punkt Neun" and "Punkt Zwölf."